Past Transgressions
by angelicalkiss
Summary: Carson Drew tells Nancy a secret from his past that will change her life forever and he asks Frank and Joe Hardy to come cheer her up. When she disappears, Carson's past comes back to haunt him. Can they find Nancy before its too late? COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One:

"Dad, who's this in the picture with Mom?" asked Nancy Drew, showing an old photo to her father, Carson. The father/daughter team decided to make the day worth it by cleaning out a few boxes in the attic in a very early spring clean when Nancy came across a box filled with her mother's old things.

"Oh, wow," sighed Carson, taking the photo from Nancy. It showed a woman with similar features to Nancy including her signature strawberry blonde hair and bright blue eyes along with a man who was not her father. The picture looked to be about 25 years old, almost the same age as Nancy, and, to her, the two looked more than just good friends. "He was a good man who treated your mother like a queen and loved her more than anything."

"What happened that they didn't end up together?" Nancy asked cautiously, taking the photo from Carson and studying it. The man looked familiar though she could not quite place him.

"Well, that's a very long story, hon," answered Carson, moving away from Nancy almost as if he wanted the conversation to end. Nancy followed close behind him though, shattering any thoughts of the subject being dropped. She stared down at the photo, twiddling with the furled edges and contemplating on what to say next.

"Dad? Were he and Mom…together?" Carson stopped going through the box but did not look up at his daughter. He knew from experience that she would hound him until he told her the truth. Her private detective instincts were always straight on point for getting the truth out of anyone. He just wished this particular subject never came up. He sighed thoughtfully and looked into her eyes. He saw so much of his beloved wife in Nancy but still missed the distinctive laugh and bright smile Kate always possessed. She could brighten the room in any storm even if the man whom he was about to tell his daughter about brought the storm with him.

"For a time, yes," Carson finally answered. Nancy could see the truth hurt her father but she was curious about the man who had stolen her mother's heart before her father did. He continued going through his box as he started the story. "His name was James Matthews and he was my best friend. We were all good friends in fact, a friendship that started while we were in middle school when James first moved to the area. Although I loved Kate from the start, she didn't feel the same way about me and always had an eye for James. She loved him very much but as the years progressed, he started having problems that caused some issues in their relationship. After I got my law degree and moved back to the area, Kate would visit me at my apartment when James would get into a mood, which was usually after he returned from one of his 'business' trips or so he called them."

"What kind of business was he in, Dad?" Nancy asked, putting down the old photo and helping Carson with the box he was going through.

"You always were the curious type, Nan. Much like your mother," laughed Carson, pulling out an old sweater with a crazy geometric pattern on it. He held it up to Nancy who snickered and shook her head in distaste. He laughed with her, folding the sweater up then throwing into a box marked "Donation." He sighed before continuing in both the box and the story. "Anyway, one night, Kate pounded on my door in tears, sporting a nasty black eye, courtesy of James. She told me he got mad at her over asking him how his trip was. Obviously, the trip did not go as planned so James took it out on Kate. I comforted her for about an hour before she fell asleep on my bed, while I slept on the couch. The next morning, James stopped by looking for her even though he already knew she was there with me. I tried to protect Kate but he got the better of me, knocking me out. When I came to, they were both gone and so was our friendship."

"That's awful!" cried Nancy, a single tear streaking down her cheek. The two finished the boxes in the attic and were walking down the stairs with the donation boxes and trash. "I hope she left him after that! I mean, she married you not too long after this whole thing, didn't she?"

"Yes, Nancy, but you are jumping ahead," Carson replied, following Nancy downstairs. The pair walked in silence though the house until the trash was thrown away and the donation box was in the garage. Hannah Gruen, their housekeeper, was cooking dinner in the kitchen when Nancy came in followed closely by Carson. They both sat down at the kitchen table with Nancy pulling out the old photo and placing it on the table.

"What's that?" asked Hannah, wiping her hands on a dish towel and walking over. Carson held it up to her and she immediately said "Oh." The housekeeper quickly turned around to go back into the kitchen when Nancy stopped her.

"Is there something I need to know?" she asked, her face beginning to turn red in anger since no one seemed to want to tell her about the man properly. "You knew him, too?"

"Yes and no, dear," began Hannah cautiously but a look from Carson shut her mouth quickly and she walked back into the kitchen without another word.

"Dad! What is going on here?" Nancy looked to her father who looked right back. "Please tell me this ends better than the way it began!"

"Let me go on and it will all be explained," Carson said. "I was hoping this conversation never came up and I forgot about the picture. I should have destroyed it when I had the chance. You see, soon after that incident, Kate would only be over while James was gone and when I wasn't busy being a public defender. The more times James left, the more she came over and I soon told her that I loved her. She finally admitted the same but we both knew that if James ever found out about us, he would kill us. Literally. He was once a good man before he got caught up in a drug smuggling operation."

"He was a drug dealer?" Nancy gasped in horror, putting her hand over her mouth.

"Not really," Carson answered. He stopped as Hannah placed two cups of coffee in front of them. The smells coming from the stove were overwhelming but Carson went on. "He was an independent contractor who moved the drugs from one country to another. He smuggled them with legitimate cargo and made a profit off both. He sometimes flew the planes himself but most of the time, he had a partner who piloted. I knew about his operation because he asked me at one point if I wanted to get in on it. I turned him down flat but he asked me not to tell Kate or anyone else for that matter. For a time, I kept that promise because he was, after all, my best friend but when our friendship went south, I debated for a time to tell someone about him. That person was Kate and she hated me for a while for not telling her but eventually came around when she realized why I didn't say anything. It was to protect her from what James did and she wanted to go to the police. This was right after the black eye incident but James continued his business with Kate and I keeping the secret until we felt was the right moment."

"Dad, how could you?!" Nancy stood up fuming. Her father took her hand, guiding her back down to the chair.

"I regret what I did," Carson stated quietly, "as did your mother but I realized something from the experience. I knew I couldn't be the kind of lawyer I was meant to be by keeping it secret." Nancy began to calm down at hearing his regret and continued listening to his story in earnest. "Kate and I started to get really…close. A few weeks later, she told me her own little secret. Kate was pregnant and she really wanted to leave James in order to be with me."

"Dad, I had no idea," replied Nancy, her heart breaking at the thought of the painful decisions her parents had to make. "What did you do? And who's baby was it?"

"Well, I don't want you to this lightly at what I am about to tell you. James was on yet another trip at the time so we kind of secretly married. Kate never told me if the baby was mine or his but I wanted it to be mine so badly and Kate agreed. We didn't care if it turned out we were wrong. The baby was going to be ours and we were going to raise it together. Not James." Carson paused to let Nancy take in the information. She sat quietly thinking as both Carson and Hannah, who forgot about her cooking, looked at her, waiting for Nancy to explode. Tears flowed down her face but she wanted to know the rest of what happened to her mother and father. Nancy looked to Carson and nodded for him to go on. Carson took a sip of coffee. "James never knew about the baby or our marriage. His plane went down over the Pacific two days before he was to return home. Although she was going to leave him, Kate was devastated over the loss but still remained strong through the whole ordeal. They never found James, the plane, or the cargo. The FBI came around asking questions and we decided to tell them the whole truth about James and his business. They decided not to prosecute either one of us due to the nature of who James was and that we feared for our lives if we said anything. The case was closed at one point when James was officially declared dead."

The room remained silent for a few minutes until Hannah cried out about her dinner. Carson and Nancy sat silently watching Hannah pulled out what was left of their dinner from the over. It was burned to a crisp and not recoverable. Hannah sighed and began cleaning up the kitchen for the evening not knowing what they were going to have for dinner. Carson and Nancy soon forgot the whole scene as Nancy finally broke their silence with a question that would change her world even more.

"What happened to the baby?"

Carson cleared his throat nervously. He really never wanted to tell Nancy anything about James Matthews but now he had no choice.

"That baby was you, Nancy," Carson slowly answered taking Nancy's hand again. She looked at him waiting for the joke to come but when it didn't, her face changed. "This happened 25 years ago, the year before you were born. I'm telling you the truth."

"But I thought…wait…this doesn't make any sense!"

"He's telling you the truth, Nancy," replied Hannah, the burned casserole in her gloved hands. "I never met James but your father always worried that he would return."

"But you said he was dead!" cried Nancy.

"Yes, declared dead but they never found the body or the plane itself," answered Carson. His worst fear was coming true. Nancy knew about James and she wasn't taking it well. "Your mother and I agreed to never tell you unless you started asking questions. We were protecting you and when your mother died suddenly, I decided to not tell you at all."

"Ok," stated Nancy after a few moments of silence. She sighed, rising from the table and pushing her chair in. "I think I need some time to think."

Carson and Hannah watched Nancy grab her purse off the counter, pull her coat on and walk out the back door, not knowing where she was going to go. They looked at each other silently, Hannah moved to the sink to continue cleaning the dishes while Carson sat quietly.

"I guess I should have know that was coming," he finally replied, standing up and walking over to the sink to help Hannah clean the dishes. "That's unusual even for you to let a dinner burn like that."

"I know," sniffled Hannah, wiping a tear from her cheek. She took the pan to the sink to wash but stopped to face Carson. "Do you think it was right for us to keep that from her for so long?"

"I'm not so sure, Hannah," answered Carson sadly. "I feel like I broke her heart knowing that she may not be my child. Kate and I were only trying to protect her from the past but it seems like we somehow destroyed her instead."

"Nancy will understand eventually, just like her mother did when you told her about James all those years ago," Hannah said gently, placing her hand on his shoulder in comfort. "Where do you think that photo came from? I thought you destroyed them all."

"I did, or at least I thought I did. Kate must have kept it in a place I never would have looked. Maybe she knew Nancy would eventually find out anyway and just prepared the way for her. You know how Kate was. Nancy is just as sneaky as her mother was."

"I remember but now I'm worried about Nancy and even I don't know how to handle this." The water sprayed over the dishes but Hannah's hands did not move to scrub them. "Nancy always misses her mother even though she barely knew her. It just doesn't seem fair for Nancy to go through this and not be able to come to us for comfort. We did this to her."

"No, we didn't," Carson reassured her. "But I agree with you and I just wish she would come back." He knew he hurt Nancy by keeping this secret from her for all these years and he really did not know how to make it up to her. He thought about his options but then something came to mind that made him smile. "I have a phone call to make!"

"Wait, what?" asked Hannah but he was already out of the room heading towards his home office. _If this doesn't work,_ Carson thought. _Nothing will._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Nancy blindly drove her Mustang through the streets of River Heights, ignoring waves of those who knew her. Even her friend Bess Marvin was ignored when she waved to Nancy as she walked out of an ice cream store.

"What's up with her?" Bess asked herself taking a sip from her large non-fat latte. She whipped out her cell phone and began dialing as Nancy turned the corner.

Nancy continued to drive out of town only to return moments later, pulling into the River Heights Public Library she passed earlier. As it was a Friday afternoon in mid January, the library was very quiet with little people inside. She walked into the main portion of the library and stopped at the reference desk where a sweet-looking, elderly lady sat. The librarian beamed brightly at the sight of Nancy and shifted her horn-rimmed glasses on her nose.

"Nancy! How good of you to stop by!" the librarian whispered loudly as not to disturb the patrons who were clearly not in the library. She put the knitting she was working on down onto her desk to give her attention to Nancy. "What can I help you with, my dear?"

"I am looking for the town archives, Mrs. Stone," answered Nancy, shifting the large purse on her shoulder. "Particularly about 25 years ago and a specific person who knew my father well, a James Matthews."

"Well, that is very specific," replied Mrs. Stone, rising from her chair though the cheerfulness she just had disappeared. Nancy noted the change in demeanor but said nothing of it to the older woman. Mrs. Stone motioned for Nancy to follow her around the desk and towards the older part of the library in the back of the building. "This was the original library before they added on and built the new wing. I remember the days of the Dewey Decimal System and no computers. The archives are just this way, dear."

Nancy followed the woman into an old room filled with stacks holding old magazines, files, and what looked to be microfiche. Mrs. Stone continued rambling on about the history of River Heights, while Nancy absentmindedly looked at each stack to see if she could find anything on her own. Not paying attention to the older woman, Nancy walked right into her as she stopped in front of a stack of local magazines dating back 25 years ago.

"You should be able to find what you are looking for here, dear," replied Mrs. Stone. "Though I must ask, are you sure you want to go down this proverbial rabbit hole?"

"I'm not sure, Mrs. Stone," Nancy answered, already seeing something that caught her eye. She pulled down an old magazine that had a picture of her father and mother on the front that she had never seen before. They were holding a baby and smiling brightly. The cover story revealed that they were the "first family" of River Heights. Realizing that Mrs. Stone was still standing there, Nancy cleared her throat and put the magazine back where it was before, noting that she wanted to return to look at the cover again. "You sound as if you knew Mr. Matthews."

"Everyone did, dear," Mrs. Stone kindly said. "Well, at least the older crowd in this town. Why, may I ask, are you inquiring about him? I'm sure that your father would be an expert on this particular subject. I'm surprised Carson never told you, though James really was not one of the 'better' young men in River Heights at the time. He was what they call a 'rebel' and everyone knew it."

"Right now, Dad and I are not speaking due to this whole thing and I wanted to get a different perspective on who the man was before I took Dad's side." Nancy continued to walk down the aisle looking at the magazines and files, wondering where to start first. She was still hurt about what her father _did_ tell her about James but she still wondered who the man really was without the bias of Carson. "Thank you, Mrs. Stone. Oh, and if you please, don't tell my dad about my visit here. I don't think he would like it if I was checking in on a few things before I talk to him again."

"Of course, dear," replied Mrs. Stone. She began to walk back to the front of the building before she turned around again. "You might want to start a year before you were born, around here." She pointed to a section filled with River Heights High yearbooks and microfiche copies of the newspaper. "Nancy, are you sure…"

"No, Mrs. Stone," interrupted Nancy, following the librarian to the spot she pointed out and looking at her sternly. The look Nancy gave her made Mrs. Stone slightly cringe. The old librarian knew the face well and also knew not to tangle with Nancy either.

"Umm, ok, right. Will I be seeing you tomorrow night at the banquet?" Mrs. Stone asked cautiously.

"What? Oh, yes! I will be there." Nancy pulled a volume out for the year her parents graduated high school and began looking through it. She looked up at the older woman and smiled. "I still love Dad very much just want some answers. I wouldn't miss his big night for anything."

"Ok, dear," smiled Mrs. Stone. She left Nancy to her search still worrying about the young woman. Although Nancy asked her not to say anything, Mrs. Stone was very hesitant to not call Carson Drew about his daughter. In the end, Mrs. Stone trusted Nancy would find what she was looking for but knew that she would never hurt the feelings of her family intentionally. The older woman returned to her desk, noticed the empty library and continued her knitting in silence, humming to herself.

* * *

"Great!" Carson spoke into the phone excitedly. "She will be so surprised to see the both of you! When can you get on a plane?"

"We can try to make the first available flight, Mr. D," replied Joe Hardy on the other end of the line. "We'll let you know when we're to be landing once we're on the plane. What's going on anyway?"

"Well, it's a long story and I can tell you once you're here," answered Carson. He didn't want to tell them too much over the phone so they have time to get to the airport. "Oh, do you boys have tuxedos or really nice suits?"

"Hold on," replied Joe. Carson heard a hand cover up the phone and muffled voices. Joe was obviously talking to his older brother, Frank, especially when the other got on the line instead.

"Sorry about that," Frank replied, sounding exasperated. Carson could hear Joe squealing in pain as if Frank hit him with something. "Joe was having a brain fart and couldn't remember we had tuxes even though we wore them a few weeks ago for a Christmas function. What are they for anyway?"

"No problem, Frank. I know how your brother is. Well, we are going to a special banquet tomorrow night. Black tie affair. You game?"

"Sure! But will you be able to get us in, especially at the last minute like this?"

"I'll worry about that, Frank," answered Carson. "You worry about getting to the airport quickly. I hear there is a storm blowing through Ohio which may delay any flights. Let me know if you need any help paying for the tickets at the last minute too."

"We've got it, Mr. Drew," assured Frank. "We'll see you soon!"

"Looking forward to it!" Carson hung up the phone and whooped loudly. Hannah came rushing in, her hands still wet from washing dishes.

"What! What happened?" she asked. Carson came around his desk and gave her a big hug. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," Carson replied happily. "I felt so bad after our conversation with Nancy this morning that I decided to invite two of her favorite people who would probably make her day once she saw them."

"Frank and Joe are coming here?" Hannah replied quickly. "On such short notice? I've got to go shopping for more food!" With that she turned on her heel and rushed out the door leaving Carson to sigh in relief that maybe Nancy would forgive him.

"Are you ready, Joe?" Frank asked, quickly putting the remainder of his clothes into his garment bag. He was able to book a flight to Chicago soon after he got off the phone Mr. Drew but it was leaving in less than four hours. By the time they got to the airport, picked up their tickets, and went through the numerous security checkpoints, the Hardys would barely have enough time to get to the gate let alone board and sit down. Only good thing is all that was available was first class. _Seeing Nancy again and flying first class…that's a trip worth taking!_ Frank thought. He zipped up the garment bag and grabbed his coat to leave.

"Joe! Let's go!"

"I'm coming!" cried Joe from his room down the hall. He soon came out into the hallway with what looked like half of his closet. Frank looked at him in disbelief. "What?"

"Are you channeling Bess or something?" Frank asked heading downstairs ahead of his younger brother. "You packed like you were never coming home."

"I'll have you know that I am just being prepared," Joe retorted, following Frank and struggling at the same time with the overabundance of luggage. "Besides, you never know when a hot girl might ask me to stay longer."

"Yeah, I'm sure Vanessa would approve of that one, Joe," Frank waved goodbye to his dad, Fenton sitting on the couch in the den. "See you later, Dad. We'll be back in a few days."

"Ok. Have fun, boys!" Fenton replied from behind the newspaper, never looking at his sons. Even though Frank and Joe were now in their twenties, Fenton still called them boys. Their mother was even worse with them but thankfully she was on a shopping trip with some friends. "Say hello to Carson for me! And be careful!"

"We will," called Joe, walking out the door. Frank was already putting his garment bag into his SUV when Joe closed the front door.

"Did you remember everything?" Frank asked taking Joe's luggage and dumping it into the back of the SUV. "Razor, tux, makeup bag?"

"Yeah, I remembered…Hey!" Joe threw the last bag at Frank before getting into the car.

"I was just trying to keep you on your toes, Joe." Frank laughed, starting the car. He pulled out his cell phone and handed it to Joe. "Call Mr. Drew and let him know our flight information, please."

"Keeping me on my toes my ass," mumbles Joe grabbing the phone from his brother and dialing the number to the Drew household. "Let's get to the airport before I kick your ass into next Tuesday…Oh, no! Not you, Hannah!"

Frank snorted in laughter, almost running the SUV off the road. Joe hit him in the arm as he apologized profusely to a very angry Hannah Gruen, who was yelling at him over the phone about his language. After Joe finished giving Hannah their flight information, the brothers drove the rest of the way to the airport in silence. They didn't speak to each other again until they were sitting comfortably in their first class seats.

"What's the in-flight meal?" Joe asked rubbing his stomach. Frank just shook his head at the way Joe could easily get over things and placed his headphones over his ears. He fell asleep listening to the music but still wondered what made Carson call them to come visit Nancy on such short notice.

* * *

Nancy stayed at the library for a few hours before realizing she really only found the same information about James Matthews as her father had told her about. She did though find a picture of James and her mother together in their senior yearbook nicknamed "Cutest Couple." It disturbed her to know that she may very well not be the daughter of Carson Drew but that of James Matthews. From the newspaper articles and pictures she found, Nancy knew she really did not want this man for a father. The articles on his numerous arrests scared her even more.

 _Am I destined to be like him?_ Nancy pondered, putting files and books back on the shelves. She found a copier to copy the articles and photos and gathered them up into a pile to take home with her. Nancy wanted to discuss James Matthews with her father more in depth now that she knew more of the story. She did, though, want to meet the man just to get a feel as to who he really was. Too bad he was dead going on 25 years, proving it to be impossible just to ask a simple question.

Nancy walked out of the archives never noticing anyone around her including a man who had walked in an hour after she did. He never said a word to her but it was obvious he was interested in her and what she was looking at. Nancy just continued about her business on her own and when the announcement was made that the library was closing, he watched her put away the volumes she had out on the table and gather the papers she copied. It was no use for him to stop her since the old librarian was nearby but he did follow her to the lounge she stopped at soon after leaving the library.

He followed her to the bar, watching her talk to the bartender whom she obviously knew as a friend. She didn't start drinking until two hours later when he bought her a drink. The bartender eyed him suspiciously, carefully keeping watch over Nancy as the man continued to buy her drink after drink. Around midnight, the bartender noticed Nancy was becoming a little tipsy and, not trusting the stranger, she dialed the one person in River Heights who would drop everything to help her.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Author's note: I hope that you are all enjoying this. This is a rather long chapter but it is necessary to the story. If you see any issues or problems that don't make any sense, please let me know in the comments! Keep up with feedback! Enjoy!_**

Chapter Three:

Although Nancy and Ned broke up over a year before they were still very good friends so when the bartender at one of the local lounges called Ned about Nancy drinking in her bar, he dropped what he was doing and went to get her. When he arrived, Nancy was flirting with a strange man at the bar but it was obvious she was trashed beyond belief.

"Thanks for coming, Ned," replied Janet, wiping the bar with a dish cloth as Ned strode into her lounge. "I'm worried about her. Ever since she got in here, Nancy's been talking strange about something her father told her earlier today."

"It's all good, Janet. I'll take her home." Ned walked over to Nancy and tapped her on the shoulder. He looked at the man she was flirting with, noticing that he was much older up close than from a distance. "Nancy! How have you been?"

"Oh, Ned! I have been so good!" Nancy cried, slurring her words just a bit. She smiled a dazzling smile that a year ago would have melted him but at the moment, worried him even more for her. She seemed too drunk to notice his face and was extremely occupied with the man behind her. "Have you met my friend…ummm, what's your name again?"

"That's all good, hon," Ned said before the man could introduce himself. He picked her up into his arms before she could object and started walking out the door. "You got her keys, Janet?"

"Bye, Mr. Someone, whoever you are!" cried a very drunk Nancy, waving to the man. She giggled, snuggling into Ned's strong arms till he put her into the passenger side of her Mustang.

"How did she get like this?" Ned asked Janet once he closed the car door. She was standing at the front of the car, keys dangling from her hand. Janet threw the keys to him as he walked around the car.

"She came in distraught about something about 5 hours ago," Janet answered. Ned gave her a look that made her cringe. "She didn't start drinking right away so don't give me that look! Nancy was crying at one point but she was so upset I couldn't get what she was saying. Then the guy came up to her to listen and started buying her drinks. She downed each one by one and that's how you found her. I didn't trust the guy so that's when I called you. He's not from around here."

"Thanks for calling, Janet. Lord knows what could have happened." Ned started the car, rolling down the window to talk to her. "I'll make sure she gets home. Did you call Hannah?"

"I called her cell to make sure Mr. Drew didn't answer. You know how he gets about Nan." Ned nodded in agreement. "She knows you're coming so she'll open the door for you once you get there."

"Thanks again, Janet," Ned shifted the car into gear and drove out of the parking lot. Janet walked back into the lounge, immediately noticing that the strange man disappeared. She checked all over the bar looking around at the other patrons but the man was gone. Janet shrugged her shoulders and went about her business the remainder of the night.

* * *

The man followed Ned back to the Nancy's house and watched as he helped her through the front door, the housekeeper looking upset in her housecoat. He drove back to his hotel and called a number from his room.

"I need you here," his voice sounding gravely. "Tomorrow. We have work to do. Bring a few of the others too. I may need help."

* * *

Back at the Drew house, Hannah was frantic as Ned carried a passed out Nancy into the house. She followed him quietly up the stairs trying hard not to make a sound as Carson had gone to bed hours before.

"What was she doing at Janet's?" she whispered. Ned eased Nancy onto her bed and pulled her boots off. Nancy rolled over, mumbling about something, and snuggled into her pillow. Hannah tucked the girl in to her bed while Ned walked out the door. She soon followed closing the door quietly. "Again, what was she doing at Janet's?"

"I don't know," answered Ned walking down the back stairs into the kitchen. He sat down at the table as Hannah filled a tea kettle with water and placed it on the burner. "Janet said Nancy was ranting about something but she couldn't understand what she was saying. Then some strange guy started buying her drinks and Nancy ended up trashed. If Janet hadn't called me, I don't know what would have happened to Nancy with that guy."

"Well, it's a good thing you're still friends with Nancy, Ned," Hannah replied. As the kettle started whistling, she walked over to the stove and poured the boiling water into the waiting mugs with herbal tea bags. "I'm worried about Nancy, especially after what happened this morning, or I should say, yesterday morning."

"What's going on that she would get herself into that situation?" Ned asked, taking the cup of tea from Hannah. "I know Nancy wouldn't let herself be influenced by a guy that easily unless she was really upset."

"Yes, well, Carson had a conversation with her yesterday about her mother," Hannah began. Ned nodded his head. He knew talking about Kate Drew was a touchy subject with Nancy. She pulled out the old photo and handed it to Ned. "Nancy found this photo in the attic while they were cleaning yesterday that brought up the subject. She insisted he tell her what it was all about and when he did, she left the house upset. We were not sure where she went but now we know."

"Janet said Nancy was at her bar for about 5 hours. Where she went before that is beyond me and Janet didn't know that either."

"Well, she's home now," replied Hannah, ending the conversation. She took the mugs from the table and rinsed them in the sink. "I think it's a good time for me to get to bed. You are more than welcome to stay here the night so you don't have to walk home in the dark."

"Thanks, Hannah. Do you mind if I take the couch?" Ned asked, rising from the chair. Hannah guided him out of the kitchen.

"Are you sure? Frank and Joe are coming later today but I don't think they'll mind if you stayed in the guest room tonight." Hannah watched Ned walk into the front den where the couch was. She shrugged as he curled up and pulled the afghan over him. "Well, if you change your mind, the guest room is prepared already."

"Thanks, Hannah," mumbled Ned. "But I'm good for now. Good night."

"Good night." Hannah walked slowly up the stairs, stopping at Nancy's room to check on her. The young woman had her arms wrapped fiercely around the pillow, her face buried by her strawberry blonde hair. Hannah felt reminiscent of the time when Nancy's mother passed away and the child cried herself to sleep each night. Even Carson couldn't help her then and he still feels like he can't help her with what she's going through now. Hannah quietly closed the door and walked to her room. She shed a few tears before drifting off the sleep herself thinking about the next day in which so many things were happening and could happen.

* * *

The next morning, Carson woke up alert and ready for the day. It was an important day for him and Nancy and he hoped that she found the time to forgive him for the secret he kept from her. He wanted to get more done yesterday but the conversation hindered the completion of the attic and anything else he wanted to do. Mid-January was not really a busy time for either of them so they wanted to get some reorganizing done while taking down Christmas.

Nancy didn't come home till long after he went to bed, though he knew that Hannah would stay up. He thought he heard footsteps in the hall around midnight but did not get out of bed worried that he would upset Nancy even more. He didn't know what to expect when he saw her the next time but he felt that everything was about to be ok with the two of them. Especially when Frank and Joe arrive and they can cheer her up even more. Just as he thought of the two brothers, he remembered that Hannah answered the phone when they gave their flight information. Although she complained about Joe using foul language he did get the information from her and found that they would arrive this morning so he had to get moving in order to pick them up from the airport. As if on cue, the phone rang in his room and he picked up.

"Hey, Mr. D!" cried Joe on the other line.

"Joe, don't tell me you two are here already!" said Carson rushing into the bathroom to clean up. "I'm not even ready to leave the house yet!"

"Oh, no! We haven't arrived yet. We've been delayed due to the stupid weather." Carson could hear a tussle going on over the phone and soon heard Frank's voice come on the line.

"Please disregard my idiot brother," he replied. Carson could hear Joe yell "Hey!" in the background. He smirked as Frank continued. "We are in Memphis. The flight got diverted here but we will be leaving in a few hours. The airline is hoping to get the planes in the air soon. The storm blew through Ohio so we had to skirt it."

"That's some diversion, Frank," answered Carson. "Let me know when you are in the air or close to it. I'll still pick you up but I may be in my tux if it's late."

"We will. See you soon."

"Bye." Carson hung the phone up and got dressed. He walked to Nancy's room and slipped the door open just a bit. She was laying on her stomach with a little bit of the comforter covering her. He noticed she was still in the clothes she wore yesterday though her boots were carefully laid on the floor. Carson slowly walked into the room trying not to make a sound, watching his daughter sleep peacefully. Her steady breathing caused the comforter still covering her to rise and fall, an arm hanging over the side of the bed. He lifted a small portion of her hair off her face and planted a small kiss on the side of her face. Nancy never once flinched as he lifted her dangling are back on to her bed and covered her completely. He didn't care about tonight anymore as long as Nancy forgave him. He slipped back out of the room without a sound and made his way downstairs to the kitchen, the smell of coffee beckoning him.

When he entered the large kitchen, Carson found Hannah brewing coffee and preparing to make breakfast. He walked over to the coffee maker after getting a mug and poured a cup once the coffee stopped brewing. He sat down at the table to enjoy his coffee as Hannah got out eggs and bread from the refrigerator.

"When did she come in last night?" he asked in between sips, watching her.

"Ned brought her home after midnight. He's sleeping in on the couch so try not wake him." As if he heard his name, Ned walked into the kitchen, yawning and rubbing his eyes from sleep.

"Morning," he mumbled plopping down in a chair next to Carson. Hannah brought over a cup of coffee, placing it on the table in front of him.

"What happened last night that you needed to bring her home?" asked Carson skeptically. He knew they had parted ways last year but were still close friends though he didn't think they were still _that_ close. "Is everything ok with her?"  
"Why don't you wait until he wakes up, Carson." Hannah playfully hit him on the arm as she was placing dishes of scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast in front of them two men. She only made enough for the three of them as she figured Nancy wouldn't be down for awhile. "When are Frank and Joe arriving?"

"They called just a bit ago saying they were diverted to St. Louis." Ned silently sat listening as he ate his food slowly. Hannah could tell he was still tired from the night before. Carson munched on the bacon before continuing. "They should be here sometime this afternoon."

"Why don't they just drive here," replied Hannah, pilling the scrambled eggs onto her plate. "It may be faster than waiting for the plane."

"I don't know why but as soon as I know when they are to arrive, I'll leave to go to Chicago to pick them up." Carson looked at Hannah. "Do you think we should wake her?"

"I think we should leave her be for now," Hannah replied after a moment of silence. "Nancy took it very hard yesterday and Lord knows what she did between leaving here and landing at Janet's last night."

"Wait a minute." Carson stopped eating with Ned stopping his fork from reaching his mouth to eat. A few of the scrambled eggs on his fork dropped onto his plate as he waited for Carson to blow up. "WHAT THE HELL WAS SHE DOING AT JANET'S?"

"Calm down, Carson," Hannah replied calmly. "She is a grown woman and you have to understand that. She was upset with us and she went to talk to someone."

"What about Bess? Or George? Hell, what about this one?" Carson pointed to Ned sitting next to him. Ned just put the food in his mouth and started chewing, ignoring him.

"Well, George is out of town," began Hannah. She took her plate and Ned's to the kitchen and rinsed them off in the sink. "Bess called me yesterday wondering what was up with Nancy since she drove by without even acknowledging her. She was concerned about her but said she was leaving late last night for a trip that was planned before she knew about tonight's festivities. Well, we all know why she doesn't call Ned. Sorry, sweetie."

"None taken."

"Well, then why was she there and why are you here now?"

"Janet called me and asked me to come get her." Ned knew not to tell Carson about the man who was buying Nancy drinks last night. It would only make him even more mad and he would probably be kicked out of the house. Hannah didn't say anything either. "Well, I am going to get going. I will see both of you tonight."

"Hang on there, buster," Carson grabbed his arm. "If I find out there's more to this story, I will personally take pleasure in dismembering you."

"Oh, stop it, you lush!" laughed Hannah. She noticed Ned believed him since his face turned white. She hit Carson on the arm again. "Leave the poor boy alone. Ned, dear, we will see you tonight. You can stop by later if you'd like and maybe escort us ladies to the banquet since Mr. Miserable here will be occupied at the time."

"Thanks, Hannah," replied a relieved Ned. He waved goodbye and walked to the living room to get his shoes. The pair soon heard the front door open and close as he left.

"You are so mean, Carson!" She watched him take his own plate to the sink and begin the process of putting it into the dishwasher even though he watched her leave the other two plates in the sink. "And don't you dare put that plate into the dishwasher!"

Carson stopped in mid-air with the dishwasher door down as Hannah walked over to him and snatched the plate out of his hand. "You have to empty the dishwasher _before_ putting dirty dishes in!" She nonchalantly swatted the back of his head, Carson feigning injury in response.

"Help! Abuse!" he laughed, ducking out of her way, forgetting that he was just as mad at her as he was with Ned. He sat back down at the island as Hannah unloaded the dishwasher.

"Yeah, I'll give you abuse," laughed Hannah as the phone rang. "That better not be Joe! I'm still mad at him over yesterday!"

"Hello, Frank! What's the update?" Carson replied into the phone.

"We are leaving shortly and we'll arrive hopefully by 3pm," answered Frank. Carson could hear the loudspeaker at the airport announcing a boarding call for a flight. "I didn't know what time the banquet was so hopefully that doesn't hinder us getting there."

"The banquet begins around 6 so we should be good as long as you arrive around 3. That seems like a long flight from Memphis, though."

"Yeah, we had to take a new flight which has a small layover in Indianapolis. At least it's not a long one and we don't have to change planes."

"Well, when you get here, you get here," replied Carson. He couldn't be annoyed with them for the delay since it wasn't their fault. He was just mad that he will get to the banquet late. He got off the phone with Frank and watched Hannah finish cleaning the kitchen. "So, what's the plan then for tonight?"

"I think Nancy has a hair appointment this afternoon along with a manicure," Hannah rattled off. "I don't have anything to do yet since I'm getting myself ready on my own."

"I don't really want to leave you two here and you not have any escorts to the banquet." Carson followed Hannah out of the kitchen and into the den where they sat to chat about the evening's festivities. It wasn't every day that someone was named "Person of the Year" by the town. The banquet had been postponed since December due to several storms that blew in right before Christmas. They were all excited especially Nancy who had nominated Carson in the first place. "It wouldn't look good if the family of the honoree was not escorted in."

"Oh, we'll be fine, Carson. Ned will be here to help." Carson cringed at the sound of his name. He still didn't like the guy even though he was nice. "Oh, stop it. Again, we'll be fine and we will see you when you get there."

Although Carson knew she was right, he felt deep down that something was wrong. He wasn't sure and he didn't know why he felt that way. Ever since Ned told him about Nancy being at Janet's last night, he felt there was more to the story that neither Ned nor Hannah were telling him. Little did he know that his instincts were right.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:**

 **This chapter is rather long but it is well worth it. I wanted it to end a certain way but wasn't sure how long the in between parts were going to be. I hope that you all enjoy this as much as I have enjoyed writing it! Don't forget to let me know how you feel about it so far!**

Chapter Four:

The man from the bar watched the Drew house from a distance. Although he drove a nice car, he did not want to be caught conspicuously watching the house so he sat in the park across the street at a bench that faced the house at a distance. He watched Ned leave the house soon after 9am and waited patiently for anyone else to come and go from the house. The man noted that it was nestled in one of the nicest neighborhoods of River Heights but not nearly as nice as his secluded home nearby, which he had recently purchased. He pondered what Carson would look like when he saw him again and smiled at the thought of it. Carson would never know what hit him. The man's phone chirped beside him, interrupting his thoughts. He smiled even larger as he read the text message sent to him. His men were here and his plan was finally coming to fruition. Rising from the bench, the man gave a small salute to the Drew residence.

"Tonight, my old friend," he replied quietly, the smile now completely gone. Only menace remained on the old face as he strolled away to his Lexus parked nearby. He texted his response after he sat down in the driver's seat of the car.

 _ **Get ready, Sage. We do this tonight.**_

* * *

Nancy woke up around noon, a massive headache pounding between her temples. Rising up from the bed slowly, the headache grew worse causing her to groan loudly. _What did I do last night?_ Nancy gingerly stepped off the bed and wobbled a bit before steadying herself with her dresser. She staggered into her bathroom to look at herself in the mirror and gasped when she saw her reflection. What surprised her most was her eyes, the normal sparkling, bright blue eyes were more of a dull grey blue as if she had taken something she shouldn't have. _I thought I only had a few drinks not drugs._ Whatever she drank last night seemed to still be in her system which was rather odd since she had gotten drunk before but never with this kind of repercussion.

Feeling like crap, Nancy took her shower, standing under the spray and letting the water run down her body. Nancy tried to think of how she was able to get home and into bed but could not remember how. In fact, the thinking seemed to make her headache even worse though the longer she stood in the shower, the better she felt. _God, I hope I didn't embarrass myself._

After nearly 20 minutes, Nancy finally shut off the shower, steam rising in the room from the hot water. She wiped the mirror with her hand and stared at her face. Some of the brightness in her eyes returned but she still looked gaunt. She thought hard about what happened the night before as she stared into the mirror.

"Was there someone who kept buying me drinks?" she asked herself aloud. There was a man there who seemed familiar but not quite. Nancy dried herself and her hair thinking even though her headache was slowly coming back due to her thought processes functioning. She tried hard to picture the man's face though the only thing that kept coming up was that he had dark hair with salt and pepper flakes throughout his hair. Once she was dressed in jeans and a sweater, Nancy paused, hearing the sound of her stomach growling loudly. She realized that she never ate dinner last night. Forgetting, for the moment, the urge to remember what the man looked like, Nancy decided to go downstairs to find Hannah and her dad. She needed to talk with them about what happened yesterday.

"Well, good afternoon, Sleeping Beauty!" cried Hannah as Nancy slowly walked into the front den of the house. The housekeeper was wrapping up the cord to the vacuum cleaner but watched Nancy plop herself down on the couch with a hefty grunt. "You hungry?"

"Yes! I'm famished!" Nancy noticed a set of sheets and a blanket piled in a heap next to the couch. "Who stayed overnight, Hannah?"

"You don't remember, dear?" Hannah quipped, putting the vacuum into the den's storage closet. When she saw the irritated blank look on Nancy's face, she cleared her throat and closed the closet door quickly. "Right. It was Ned. He picked you up from Janet's late last night. He said you were drinking heavily and Janet called him, concerned for your well being. Come on let's go into the kitchen and I'll fix you something."

"What happened last night?" Nancy asked not moving from the couch. She wanted to know everything Hannah knew and then she would grill Ned later for the rest.

"Well," Hannah began, knowing that if she didn't continue, Nancy would refuse to eat anything until she divulged everything. "Ned was a perfect gentleman and brought you straight home. There might be still a little bit of affection there if you ask me." Nancy gave her a dirty look. "Anyway, he stayed the night and was probed by your father this morning, though Carson was not too happy to hear that you were at Janet's."

"That's none of his business, Hannah," Nancy said rudely. Hannah was taken aback by how she acted about Carson. Although they had their spouts here and there, Nancy never spoke so nastily about her dad. "Where is he anyway?"

"He had to go into work," Hannah said quickly after a brief hesitation. The housekeeper paused slightly before grabbing a Swiffer Duster and started dusting. She had a bad feeling as to how the rest of the conversation was going to go.

"Really?" Nancy asked skeptically. She may have a small hangover but she still knew when she was being lied to. "On a Saturday? Hours before he is to be honored by the River Heights Council?"

"Well, that and a few errands to run before going to the banquet this evening. He said he forgot a few things at work that he needed for tonight and he may be running a little late getting there."

"He's not coming home before the banquet starts?" Nancy asked, a little put out. Even though it was a busy day, and an important one at that, Nancy thought for sure she would have the time to talk to her father before tonight's banquet. It was almost as if he were purposely avoiding another confrontation with her before the festivities started. She tried to hide her disappointment but Hannah could read it on Nancy's face before the mask of anger came on and overshadowed it. "Well, I guess I should go myself. My appointment is in a half hour so I'm just going to go."

"What about lunch?" Hannah asked, hoping to change Nancy's mind from going.

"I lost my appetite."

"Nancy, look. I'm sorry he's not here. I'd rather he be here too from the look on your face but…"

"But what, Hannah?" Nancy yelled, Hannah cringing from the shrill. A single tear ran down Nancy's cheek. "He seems to be gone whenever things get too hairy for us."

"No, that's not what's going on!"

"No! Just leave me alone!" Nancy slipped on her flats, grabbed her purse and keys, slamming the front door as she left. Hannah looked in her wake, hoping Nancy would return to say something but after a few minutes, she knew she was gone. Hannah went to the house phone nearby to make a very difficult phone call to Carson's cell. Through all the things Nancy has been through, Hannah wondered what really was going on as to make her yell at her own loved ones.

* * *

A few hours after Hannah's call to Carson, he waited in the chairs outside the gate Frank and Joe would arrive from at Chicago's O'Hare Airport. The conversation with Hannah was difficult to listen to as she was crying and sniffling about how Nancy snapped at her. He didn't understand what was going on with his daughter but Hannah did convey that Nancy was more upset about him not being at the house than anything else. That gave him hope in which maybe she was ready to talk to him about what happened the day before. His thoughts on the subject were interrupted by a tap of a finger on his shoulder.

"We didn't want to disturb you," said a kind, familiar voice behind him. Carson looked around to see Frank sitting in the chair behind him, a caring smile on his face. Joe stood next to his brother, his blue eyes watching Carson with concern. "You looked deep in thought."

"How long have you been here?" Carson asked.

"Long enough to know that something is troubling you," Joe answered. "You didn't even wave to us when we got off the plane so we just decided to wait for you to return to the land of the living. Frank got worried after a while a tapped you on the shoulder."

"Oh, sorry about that," replied Carson, rising from his chair with his coat over his arm. He checked his watch reading 3:15. "Oh, no! Look at the time! We have to get going!"

"Exactly what I said ten minutes ago!" Joe cried. "I'm hungry!"

"That's Joe for you!" Frank smirked at his younger brother. Carson gave a small smile too though it didn't seem genuine. "Always thinking of his stomach before anything else."

"Hey! I resent that remark!" Joe slapped Frank's arm playfully as they began walking through the terminal to get their bags. "Ooo, look! A food court!"

"It's okay," Carson laughed. He was glad the two brothers agreed to come at his invitation. He knew that they would lighten the mood in the house for the next few days, although he wanted to talk to Nancy alone sometime. "The banquet isn't for another few hours" *groan* "but we can stop somewhere for a snack on the way back."

"Awesome!" cried Joe, walking ahead of Frank and Carson.

"So, what's going on Mr. Drew?" Frank asked just loud enough for Carson to hear him over the other travelers. They walked into the Baggage Claim area with Joe bounding in front of them, looking for the right roundabout. An announcement came over the loudspeaker interrupting Carson before he could say anything.

"It's a long story," Carson finally said once it was a little quieter again. Joe waved to them, pointing to an empty baggage roundabout. The pair walked toward Joe quietly, listening to the sounds of the airport around them. "I'll tell you all about it on the way to River Heights. We are running a little bit behind schedule but we'll make it."

"Sorry about the delay, Mr. D," Joe said. Carson waved it off and watched the roundabout begin to move, baggage slowly coming around. He looked at the time again and realized that they would have to rush to get back in time for the banquet.

Carson's phone vibrated announcing a message: _**Went out for a little bit to get my hair done. Nancy was here when I got home. She seems better than before. I'll let you know more late**_ **r.** Carson smiled at the thought that Nancy was better. Hopefully, Frank and Joe will cheer her up too.

"Who was that?" Joe asked, inquisitively which resulted in receiving a slap on the back of the head by Frank.

"Manners!"

"It's fine, Frank," Carson laughed again at the brothers. They always did make him laugh even in the worst of times. "It was just Hannah. She said Nancy was home and everything seems fine now."

"Wait, you want to fill us in, Mr. D?" Joe grabbed one of his bags off the roundabout while Frank already had his one and only garment bag.

"Well, Nancy is sort of mad at me at the moment." Carson looked upset, his smile now gone. "It's why I thought it would be nice if you two visited for a few days."

"Nancy? Mad? At you?" Frank looked at Carson waiting for the joke that never came. "When has she ever been this mad at you that you would need help?"

"Let's keep moving and I'll tell you in the car," answered Carson, moving away from the baggage area.

"Wait! My bags!" cried Joe, pointing to the roundabout that was still moving though the baggage coming out were few and far between.

"Just how much did you pack, Joe?" Carson looked at the two bags that were already in front of him.

"Don't ask," muttered Frank.

* * *

"Hey, Hannah," said a quiet voice from behind her. Hannah turned to see Nancy at the base of the stairs. Hannah had been home for close to a half hour when Nancy finally came down to see her. Even without a gown on, the young woman looked beautiful with her makeup on and her strawberry blonde hair swept back into a loose coif at the nape of her neck.

"Nancy! I was hoping you would come down here." She noticed that Nancy's makeup was slightly smeared as she came closer. "What is it, dear?"

"Hannah, I…I want to apologize for the way I acted earlier today. I don't know what's come over me." Nancy walked over to Hannah, who stood up, and hugged her tight. Hannah, who was more of a second mother to Nancy since Nancy's mother passed away, held her tightly and stroked her head lightly for a few minutes before she pushed Nancy apart to look at her.

"It's fine and so are you," Hannah said softly as if she were comforting a small child. She smoothed over Nancy's face taking note that the young woman would probably have to reapply her makeup before they left for the banquet. Hannah looked at the clock over the stove, which read just after 4 o'clock. Their ride would be there in a little over an hour. "We will all be fine after we get through this night. Okay?"

"Okay," sniffed Nancy, carefully wiping below her eyes. "I just feel bad about losing it, that's all."

"I know, hon. When your father returns tonight, you'll have the next few days to talk it over with him."

"Where is he really?" Nancy looked expectedly at Hannah for the lie to come but the older woman just sighed in defeat. Hannah looked right at her and told Nancy exactly where Carson was. Her face seemed to brighten at the thought of her closest friends coming. "Frank and Joe are coming here?"

"Yes," answered Hannah. "Your father thought you needed a pick-me-up since Bess and George are out of town for a while."

"How thoughtful of him." Hannah didn't miss the slight hint of sarcasm coming from Nancy. It was almost as if she were still a bit miffed at Carson for reasons that Hannah didn't know. "I'm going back upstairs before we leave. I have some things I need to take care of before we go."

"Oh, okay." Hannah was surprised at the sudden change in attitude from Nancy. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"As you said yourself, I'm fine," Nancy stated bluntly. "Call me when the car arrives."

* * *

The man and his men waited outside the Drew residence, watching as first Nancy then Hannah returned from their errands. Carson, himself, had not been seen since right before noon when he left for the airport, as one of his men who was following him reported to the man. The woman next to him stared at the house as well, waiting for the moment he gave his signal for her to go. She was to go to the house searching for Kate and asking questions, all the while sizing up the house and making sure the back door was unlocked.

"It's time, Sage." The woman nodded in acknowledgment.

"What if Drew returns?"

"Leave him be although I don't think he will be back anytime soon. According to Jackson, he left the airport a half hour ago with two young men." The man pulled out a small device and flicked it on. A phone beeped nearby in response to losing the signal. "There's only one thing we're here for and he needs to be publicly humiliated for what he's done. Whatever you do, don't kill anyone, especially in front of the women. You know what to do if someone comes."

"Yes, sir," answered Sage. She opened the car door, letting in the cold January weather. "Be ready."

Sage walked across the street, hearing the sound of an engine roaring to life behind her. As she approached the front door, the van they were piled into turned the corner and out of sight. The street was very quiet with most of the residents either still in their homes ignoring the young woman when she pushed the door bell to the Drew residence.

At 5pm, Hannah began walking up the stairs to get dressed for the banquet. She knew that Ned would be arriving by 5:30 to she needed to get her dress on before he arrived. Hannah was almost to the top of the steps when the doorbell rang downstairs. She sighed and walked back down to answer the door, finding a young woman of about 30 years of age with short, platinum blonde hair that was spiky at the top. She was dressed in a nice outfit but still had an air of trash to her.

"Hi! I'm looking for a Kate Austin?"

"Umm, she's no longer at this residence." From being around Carson and Nancy all these years, Hannah's red alert signal was kicking in to high gear for she felt something was off. "Why are you asking?"

"She knew my father about 30 years ago and I just wanted to meet her." The woman gave Hannah a dazzling smile though her eyes gave away that she wasn't genuine. "My father used to tell me stories about how much of a good person she was and I was in town for a few days so I decided to stop by and see her."

"What's your father's name, if I may ask?" Hannah's intuition lowered a bit since she knew some of the people Kate knew but most of her closest friends were at her funeral when she passed away.

"Major William Masters of the U.S. Army, well formerly of the U.S. Army. Have you heard of him? He retired just last year." The woman looked at Hannah hoping to be let in. "May I come in?"  
"I have heard him," Hannah answered skeptically. She never opened the door any further than necessary throughout their whole conversation. "But I didn't know he had a daughter or that he knew Kate."

"Well, he kept his family life very private," the woman added sounding slightly annoyed that she wasn't being invited in.

"I'm sure he did," Hannah smiled but still didn't move to open the door further. "Look, I'm sure you have questions but frankly speaking, right now is not a good time for you to be here. In fact, I don't think you should be here at all since I don't believe that you are who you say you are. Whatever it is you're peddling or wanting, please take it elsewhere. Good day."

* * *

Sage watched the door close shut firmly in her face, hearing the dead bolt move into place. She cursed herself and the housekeeper for her misfortune of getting in. So the older woman did have brains. _Maybe he'll let me have a bit of fun with the "help" before we left with the prize_ she thought as she stepped down from the top step. Sage pulled out her phone to relay what transpired to her boss, worried that he would be mad that she didn't fulfill her part of the plan. What surprised her was the response she received from him as she walked down the sidewalk. She smiled broadly reading the message:

 _ **We have it all in hand. Don't worry.**_

"Who was that?" Nancy called from upstairs. She looked over the banister to Hannah below while putting her diamond earrings in her ears. The look on Hannah's face made Nancy's own instincts scream loudly that something was wrong.

"I'm not sure," Hannah quickly replied walking back to the kitchen to make sure the back door was secured. What she found was not what she expected nor wanted. Sitting at the table was the man with dark hair with salt and pepper flakes through it, a man she recognized almost immediately. Behind him stood several mean-looking men of brute size with the young woman Hannah was just talking to standing in the door, an evil smirk written across her face.

"Hannah?" called Nancy again. The man at the table motioned for her to be quiet as he pointed to two of the men to go upstairs to fetch Nancy. He pulled out a small device, laid it on the table, and waited for his men to return.

* * *

"Hannah?" Nancy called downstairs. She knew Hannah went to the back of the house for some reason but now the woman wasn't answering her at all. Something was wrong and they needed to get help. Nancy went over to her cell phone but noticed that there was no signal. "What? How can that be?"

She looked to the door when she heard a floorboard creak on the back staircase. Looking down, Nancy realized she wouldn't get far in the gown she was wearing but she sure as hell knew she was going to put up a good fight to whoever it was that invaded her house. She went to the house phone in her room but found no dial tone meaning someone had cut the line to the house. Hannah and she were in trouble and there was no way to get help.

The door squeaked open slowly revealing two large men, one with a crooked smile and the other with missing teeth, standing in the doorway. Nancy laughed at them knowing that even though they were larger, she was faster and knew how to handle herself. Now, if more came up, she would be in trouble. She stumbled back away from them acting like she was helpless and when they lowered their guard on her, Nancy drove her knee up into Crooked Smile's groin, doubling him over. Missing Teeth looked in surprise at her but didn't recover quick enough as Nancy drop kicked him in the face causing him to grab his nose. She heard a rip as her gown's already open slit split even more. _Damn it! I paid $300 for this dress!_ Crooked Smile tried to get back up again when she grabbed him by his hair and threw him out of the room as if he were trash. She heard a crash as he went through the wall, out cold. Nancy looked to the door as she heard more footsteps coming up and she prepared herself for the onslaught of men by grabbing a heavy looking book and hiding behind the door.

When she saw a man step into the room, Nancy raised the book and walloped him in the back of the head, knocking him out. She soon realized she was in trouble as Missing Teeth grabbed her from behind and two more men came rushing in, trying to grab her legs. She kicked out, hitting one of the other men in the face and the other in the stomach but they were soon able to grab a hold of her to take her downstairs. Nancy tried to scream but Missing Teeth put his hand over her mouth, stifling any noise. She struggled with them all the way to the kitchen, knocking photos off the wall and punching holes.

Once they were in the kitchen, Nancy was forced into a chair at the table next to Hannah facing a very familiar man who smiled at her. She tried to get up but Missing Teeth and another man pushed her back down. They flanked her from moving again.

"You're just like your mother," the man said. Nancy stopped trying to get up and looked to Hannah. She knew it couldn't be who she thought it was but Hannah confirmed it with the look of sheer terror on her face. Although he was 25 years older, Nancy knew exactly who it was who broke into their house and caused terror. James Matthews.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Author's Note:_**

 ** _Sorry it took so long to write the next chapter. I wrote and rewrote the whole thing because I didn't like the way it sounded. Same thing goes for the next chapter but hopefully that one won't take as long. I know I may piss off a lot of people for this chapter so you have been warned before reading it! Enjoy!_**

Chapter Five:

"How is this possible?" Nancy quietly spoke, staring at James. He smiled broadly, taking a sip of tea. "You're dead!"

"Well, my dear," James replied. "I'm not really here. I'm in your head." He looked from Nancy to Hannah and back again only to burst out laughing from the look on their faces. "I'm kidding! Lighten up you two!"

"How can we lighten up?" Hannah said shrilly. She looked at him scathingly, the terror still present in her eyes. "You break into our home and are keeping us prisoner. There's no way to lighten up from that experience!"

"Ooo, you have a shrill voice that I don't want to hear again," James said calmly, snapping his fingers and one of the men behind her pulled out a roll of duct tape. He gagged Hannah, her eyes going wide and then proceeded to tape her hands together, Nancy watching in horror. "Take her to the other room but nearby. I don't want her to miss anything. Now, we can have some privacy and not be so rudely interrupted."

"Please don't do this," Nancy pleaded as the man pulled Hannah into the other room, disappearing around the corner.

"Don't do what?" James asked, looking at Nancy with concern. "I have no intention of harming either one of you. That is not what this visit is for. Besides, she needs to hear what I have to say in order to tell your father."

"What is it that you want?"

"You haven't figured that one out yet, Nancy? Your father knew a few things years ago, so did your mother, and having a banquet honoring him is a farce." He smiled as she cringed hearing him say those things. She didn't believe him yet she felt there was some sort of truth behind what James said. When she didn't reply, James continued. "Your father also took something from me and I want it back."

"Then why don't you just ask for it back instead of doing what you're doing now?"

"Well, I can't very well ask for a person back, now can I?"

"What?" Nancy stared blankly at him. James laughed at her. He thought she was a bit smarter than this but she just wasn't getting what he really wanted. He was angry with Carson for years until it turned into blatant hatred.

"When you spoke to me last night, I felt so bad for you knowing that your father had lied to you since birth," James began almost consolingly. Nancy's face went white at first then went deep red in anger as she tried to lunge at him. Missing Teeth grabbed her and sat her back down before she could do anything.

"That was you?" she screamed. Nancy was so angry she didn't really want to listen anymore. Although she barely remembered the night before, she now remembered the kindness this man showed the night before even though it seemed he kept buying her drinks. "What did you put in my drinks last night?"

"Ah, yes, ahem," James said. "That was unfortunate I couldn't take you last night. When I saw you at the library so intently looking for answers, I decided to follow you to the bar and after hearing what you were crying about to that nosy bartender, I felt bad for you. I wanted to take you away from the wretched father so I put a little something in the glasses when the bartender wasn't looking to make you more…complacent. How was I to know the bartender would call a friend to come get you."

"That doesn't give you the right to do that to me," Nancy seethed. She looked at the man's calm face and realized that he really was concerned for her. Almost in a fatherly way. Nancy started calming down a bit, when he asked if she would like a cup of tea with him, assuring her there was nothing in it.

"Now, back to our conversation from last night, where did you find the photo?" Nancy went pale again realizing that she told a lot more than she should have the night before. _Geez! What else did I blurt out last night?_

"We found it in the attic, in an unmarked box. I don't know why you'd want that. There were just a few things of my mother's in it, nothing of real importance."

"Nothing can always turn into something, Nancy." He calmly directed a man over to him and whispered into his ear. The man took another and they went upstairs in search of the box Nancy had told them about. He nodded to Missing Teeth behind Nancy, and he left the room towards the front of the house.

Nancy was not sure where the man was going but she was glad that Missing Teeth was gone. She only saw a few others around the room including the silent woman by the back door. With the small amount of men in the room, she may just be able to work her way out the back door to get away. Her plans disintegrated though when she felt yet another hand on her shoulder almost as if someone read her mind.

"No, let's chat for a bit while we're waiting."

* * *

Frank sat in the passenger seat as Carson drove. They were almost to River Heights after stopping to get Joe something to eat and so the Hardys could change. Joe sat in the back seat looking uncomfortable in his nicely pressed tux and crossing his arms in defiance since Frank had scolded him on complaining about being in a monkey suit. Frank had to remind him that this was for Nancy and he wouldn't have to wear it for long. Just until the end of the night when it was time to go home. The two brothers had sat listening to Carson tell the story of what happened between him and Nancy the night before. An uncomfortable silence came over the car once Carson was done talking.

"Have you heard from Nancy or Hannah since we left the rest stop?" Frank asked, breaking the silence.

"Actually, no which is strange because Hannah told me she would contact me when she and Nancy were done talking." Carson kept his eyes on the road but Frank noticed the look of concern he had on his face. Even he thought it was strange that no one called and asked where Carson was. "I tried calling the house but it seems to be busy and then I tried calling both their cells only to be put directly in to voicemail. I think I left about 4-5 messages on each of them. It's all very weird since Nancy has her phone practically attached to her hip all the time."

"Do you know what else is weird?" Frank asked looking at the side-view mirror. It was dark already but he noticed a grey sedan at the rest area and it seemed to be keeping pace with them. Every time they passed a lamp, the light would shine down on the grey color of the car. Besides, due to his life as a private investigator, his observation skills were heightened noticing things that others would not. "I think we're being followed."

"What?" cried Joe, instantly turning around in the seat to get a good look at the car behind them.

"Are you sure?" Carson asked, stealing a look in the rearview mirror. There were a lot of cars on the road as it was Saturday night but when Frank mentioned the grey sedan, Carson saw it pop up when they passed another lamp. He recognized it from the rest area as well and he could have sworn that he saw it when they pulled out of the airport hours earlier. He slowed down a bit and noticed the grey sedan begin to pass them in the left lane. Carson heaved a sigh of relief when he saw an elderly couple riding in the sedan.

"Maybe it was just a coincidence," Joe stated, burping really loudly and excusing himself.

"Maybe," Frank replied, pulling his own cell phone. He didn't think it was a coincidence like his brother did and felt it would be wise to make sure Hannah and Nancy were ok. "I'm going to call Hannah again to if she answers this time. Something still doesn't feel quite right."

Sure enough, once the call went through, Frank was sent directly to voicemail. He left a message asking her to call either him or Carson back once she got the message. It was very unlike either woman, especially Nancy, to not return a phone call right away let alone have their phones off.

"Maybe we should stop by the house before going to the banquet," stated Carson. Once the grey sedan had passed, he picked up speed hoping to get back quicker. His phone soon chirped in its holder on the dashboard, revealing a text was received. It was a text sent by Nancy to Carson's relief. He hit a button on the steering wheel for it to be read aloud by the car.

 _ **Running a bit late. Don't worry. We'll be there soon. Luv ya**_

"Ok, well that answers our question about where they're at," replied Joe. Both Hardys looked at each other and clearly felt the same. Something was off. "Why though, wouldn't Hannah call? We left so many messages that even I would be annoyed that someone kept calling. Besides, what would make them late? Mr. D? How far do you live from the banquet hall?"

"It's on the other side of town, opposite the house," Carson answered. "So, it would be about a 10 minute drive in good traffic. As much as I feel odd about the whole thing, I think we should just wait it out at the banquet. I'm sure they'll be along soon. If not, Chief McGinnis will be there and we can have him send a car over to make sure everything is ok."

"Ok," replied Frank still worried about Nancy and Hannah. What if something really bad happened and they weren't there to help them?

* * *

Nancy had been listening intently to James until Missing Teeth returned with a few files under his arm. James sat quietly as the other man whispered in his ear, nodding every so often. Moments later, the men from the attic trudged downstairs with the box Nancy described. She still did not understand what James would want with her mother's old things.

She was just about to ask the question when Nancy heard the distinct click of the front door unlocking and opening. _Oh, thank God! Someone's here!_ She tried to get up to warn whoever it was only to be stopped by Missing Teeth, who had repositioned himself behind her, wrapping his beefy arms around her, placing his large hand over her face to quiet her. The other men in the room moved stealthily into different positions. The dining room was already dark so one of the men was able to station himself in a perfect position to watch the person who entered the house unexpectedly.

"Nancy?" came a very familiar voice form the foyer. Nancy closed her eyes, tears flowing down her face. "Hannah?"

Nancy started squirming when she saw the man in the dining room take aim with his gun and silencer. James noticed her squirming and looked to the other room to see what was troubling her, though he was too late to stop the man from pulling the trigger. Two soft pings rang through the silence and, to Nancy's horror, she heard a thud of a body hitting the floor. She continued to struggle against the much larger man, screaming under his hand.

"Idiot!" yelled James, rushing into the dining room. Muffled sobs could be heard coming from Hannah who watched the whole thing happen. James angrily grabbed the gun from the other man, pulled back the hammer and shot him in the head. "No one was to be hurt! That was the deal!"

"Owww!" cried Missing Teeth, grabbing his hand and letting go of Nancy. She just bit him on the hand and was about to go attend to the person in the foyer when Sage ran up to her, grabbing Nancy's hair from behind, bending her back allowing Missing Teeth to recover. He slapped her across the face, her cheek turning red almost instantly.

"No!" cried James running to the kitchen. He pushed Sage and Missing Teeth away from Nancy who sat in a heap on the floor, rubbing her swollen cheek. A tiny bit of blood seeped out of her mouth from the bloody lip she received. Missing Teeth watched her menacingly as James helped Nancy get up. She pushed James away, running to the foyer past Hannah and the dead body.

Nancy felt like she was moving in slow motion as she rounded the corner to find Ned half-sitting at the bottom of the steps. A large spatter of blood was on the wall, streaked slightly from when Ned slid down it.

"No!" she screamed, running to him. He weakly lifted his hand to her face, trying to wipe away the flowing tears coming down her cheeks. Nancy cupped his head as he tried to get words to come out but only blood spluttered out. A large red spot had formed on his tuxedo shirt and a single white rose was still in his hand. Ned laid there trying to catch his breath as Nancy cried, trying to comfort him. He spoke minimal words that Nancy could barely understand but she knew what he meant. When he closed his eyes for the last time, Nancy screamed at the top of her lungs, pulling his head to hers and trying to wake him up again. All she wanted was to see him smile again.

James came stood in the entry way to the dining room, looking at her with pity. She looked up at him in rage as the other men and Sage stood around, looking at her. Missing Teeth smirked and laughed at the sight, making Nancy even more mad. She rose quietly, looked at the evil man and lunged for him but didn't get far. This time it was Sage who tried to grab Nancy from behind but the young woman was ready for a fight as if nothing else mattered anymore. Even though they were no longer in love, their friendship had grown again recently and Nancy almost wished at one point he would want to get together again even though it was her who broke them apart.

Sage did not realize who she was dealing with until Nancy pushed back with her legs, propelling the two women into one of the foyer tables. A catfight between the two ensued where it seemed Nancy was getting the upper hand on Sage before James butted in, pulling Nancy off the other woman. Nancy tried to scratch at him, struggling with his hands as he held her wrists. Her tears were flowing heavier now as he tried to calm her down to no avail. He finally yelled for help with someone pulling out a syringe, plunging it into Nancy's arm. She screamed loudly as pain erupted when the needle broke on her arm. Though she grabbed her arm, whatever was given to her took immediate effect. James picked her up in his arms and carried her out the back door to the waiting van in the alley.

Hannah sobbed louder, watching the men follow James and Nancy out of the house, leaving her in darkness and silence. The man who killed Ned lay near her, eyes staring straight up at the ceiling, left there for some unknown reason. She was forced to look at the poor man's face until the sound of sirens came up to the house later.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Author's note:**_

 _ **Please let me know if you love it or hate it! I love hearing the feedback that you all have been giving me and I appreciate it so much! Now, on with the story...**_

Chapter Six

Carson and the Hardys arrived at the banquet at about 6:15 that evening. Tim, the man in charge of the celebration, came rushing out of the hall to them, announcing that the meal had already started. Carson did not mind since he would not have wanted anyone to wait for him anyway. The award portion of the banquet was to begin following the meal at any rate.

"First Nancy is a no-show then your turn up late!" cried Tim, ushering the three men into the hall.

"Wait a minute," said Carson, halting the procession. Other later arrivals walked around them on their way in, looking at Carson and waving in respect. "Nancy's not here? Is Hannah at all?"

"No, none of them arrived. We expected them right at 6. Well, at least that is what Ned said when he called outside of your house. He was already running late as it was and he didn't think that they'd be able to get here by then."

"Maybe they're on their way then," replied Joe. He looked at Frank and they both shared a strange vibe. Something wasn't right. They knew Nancy all too well and she would never knowingly leave someone high and dry and not call. But was it worth driving across town just to find out that they arrived at the banquet while they headed over there.

"Nancy texted me about twenty minutes ago, saying that they would be late," Carson stated. He looked just as worried as Frank and Joe but felt that they were on their after some catastrophe with Nancy's hair or makeup probably. "We'll just wait for them to get here. I'm sure they'll be here soon. At least let us get some food. Nancy would hurt me if I waited to eat just for her."

"And your guests here?" Tim asked, gesturing to Frank and Joe. "Will they be in your daughter's place for now until she gets here or where their seats are currently?"

"Where is that, Tim?" asked Carson.

"Unfortunately, I had no choice but to put them in the middle of the room." Tim looked a little uncomfortable. "The donors have preferential treatment as to where they sit and…"

"They'll sit with me for now," interrupted Carson, a little annoyed. Even some of his closest friends would not have cared being moved to another table for the Hardys but Tim obviously didn't care about that. He gave one last look at the door as if Nancy or Hannah would instantly materialize, laughing about some mishap that happened to them. Carson wondered what was keeping them as he followed Tim into the banquet hall.

His thoughts were interrupted by the loud applause that erupted once he entered the room. He flashed a dazzling smile to everyone around him, shaking hands with some men and giving kisses and hugs to some women. Frank and Joe just followed quietly behind, smiling as they watched gratitude and respect raining down upon Carson. They knew from Nancy telling them that her father did a lot for the community not just from having one of the most successful law firms in the county but also from contributing to the afterschool programs, fundraisers and charity balls, and community outreach for teens.

Tim guided them to the head table situated on a raised stage above everyone. A large screen was behind the podium and table where a few picture flashed of Carson and Nancy doing things around River Heights. There was one where Carson was planting a tree with Ned and another a group was smiling with a finished playground behind them. Frank's heart skipped a beat when a striking photo of Nancy appeared dressed in a ball gown, hair loosely pulled back and arm-in-arm with Ned. They looked like such a handsome couple, a little bit of jealousy seeping through him.

"Nice picture," whispered Joe. "Wonder where they're at now."

Frank shrugged erasing his thoughts and sitting down at what should be Nancy's seat. The brothers watched as Tim introduced Carson to the captive audience. The sea of stunning gowns and fine tuxedos stood once more in a standing ovation for the town's "Man of the Year," a well deserved award for Carson it seemed.

"Thank you for that wonderful welcome!" Another applause. "I do apologize for my tardiness so I won't keep you from your meal. Enjoy!" Another applause ensued as Carson shook hands with the other guests on the stage including a familiar face to the Hardys. Chief McGinnis tipped his head to the boys in recognition before sitting down on the opposite end of the main table.

"Let's enjoy our meal as we watch a video on Carson's commitment to River Heights," Tim replied into the microphone. More applause came but died down quickly as the lights were lowered and the picture disappeared from the screen. The video was just beginning when servers came to Carson, Frank, and Joe with their food.

Carson was just about to take a bite out of his chicken when his phone came on revealing "Nancy's Cell" as the caller. He quickly grabbed it and excused himself to the Hardys, walking away from the main table and the video that was still a blank screen.

"Nancy? Where are you? You should have been here by now?"

"Hello, Carson," came a male voice. "Long time." Carson stood rooted to the end of the stage, wondering who it was calling him from Nancy's phone. He was quite sure but voice sounded vaguely familiar. "I want you to take a look at all the smiling faces in front of you. Go on, take a look." Carson did as he was told. "Good. Now, remember their happy faces really well because this is the last time they will be happy for you."

"What do you mean?"

"Just watch and see." The man on the other line started laughing until the phone cut off. The laughing though got louder and didn't stop. Confused faces around the room started murmuring at the laughter which they realized was coming from the speakers. Frank and Joe looked around as well, standing to see where Carson was.

"Now that I have everyone's attention, let me say hello to all of you." The screen faded in to reveal James Matthews sitting in what looked like a moving vehicle. The audience who knew his face suddenly gasped with one woman actually fainting, a number of guests rushing to help. Carson walked up the stage, staring at the face of his old friend, mouth open slightly. "I take it that was my mother who fainted." James laughed. "I guess I should have told her I was alive but then again, she might have done what my old pal, Carson, did. Isn't that right, Carson?"

The audience looked at Carson aghast at knowing that their hero had kept something so monumental from everyone of them. Carson's look turned to rage at his now former friend. James was not someone he ever wanted to see again and here he was, talking to them via video. He prayed nothing happened to his family but dreaded what was to be revealed by James.

"Oh, you didn't tell them either, did you, Carson? Well, I guess it's what you get when keep secrets. Tsk. Tsk. Tsk." James wagged his finger in front of the camera. "Naughty, naughty! But I think you may be in for a reality check there, Carson. See, ladies and gentlemen all dressed in your best, Carson Drew is not really the man you think he is. This whole thing of naming him 'Man of the Year' is laughable at best because he has done a few things that even I wouldn't have done. Oh, wait a minute." James paused to think then smiled broadly. "Yes, I would have done the things he has. But Carson, here, kept my secret long before my so-called 'death' along with Kate and even kept them from his own daughter."

"You keep her out of this, James!" cried Carson angrily.

"Oh, but Carson, that's a little too late at this point." James laughed a bit and rolled his eyes, looking to another part of the car he was in. "Now, no more interruptions, my dear boy, you know how much I HATE that! Well, onward with the story I have been wanting to tell for a long time. I sent my beloved a letter a few years after my untimely 'death,' telling her that I was alive and that I wanted to return home to her only I couldn't under the circumstances I was in but I won't tell you now. Anyway, I received a letter back which turned out to be a 'Dear John' letter saying that she had moved on and did not care to see me anymore. Of course, I was devastated at the thought of my love being with someone else. And wouldn't you know it, she was with you, Carson. Plus the fact that she conveniently decided not to tell me she had a child too. Then I found out years later, that my beloved had died several years before so my devastation inflated again. Well, I started looking into her death and found that she died the year _before_ I sent my letter. So, I got to thinking, who would send me a letter supposedly written by Kate and never mention who she was with? Hmmm….can you think there Carson? Well, the 'Man of the Hour' himself 'honorably' sent the letter in order to get me off Kate's dead back. That's when I decided to come home to find my old friend and to find out that he has a daughter, who incidentally looks _exactly_ like Kate. Then to my surprise, not only was she Kate's only child but that she's about to turn 25 not too long from now, am I right? No wonder you didn't mention her in that letter, Carson! You were actually afraid of what might happen, weren't you? Now, come on, admit it." James paused smiling at the screen waiting for Carson to respond.

"No! You were dead and that was that!" Carson cried, pointing his finger at James. "I kept it from everyone to protect them!" The audience started murmuring louder as James started laughing again.

"See! There's that fear I knew you had and you have good reason to be afraid. Carson, you've had a grand life, unlike the one I've experienced over the past 20 some odd years. A big house, built on lies; a great job, built on the backs of those beneath you; and a loving daughter, who probably isn't even yours; a great life it has been for you even though others have suffered for you to get it. Now, it's my turn, 'old friend.' I'm about to take away everything you hold dear starting with the one thing you cherish most. By the way, did you enjoy my earlier phone call? You sounded so sure it was her and I wanted to laugh so hard but I kept my cool. Before I leave you to the chaos that is about to arise, I wanted to show you something." He dangled a necklace in front of the camera. "Recognize this? It has this beautiful picture of Kate on the inside. I miss her so much but I guess I have to settle for the next best thing. Right?" James saluted to the camera before it faded out leaving the whole crowd to revert to the chaos that he predicted.

Carson remained at the spot only sitting down to put his head in his hands. His life just made a complete reverse, all because he decided to keep a secret. Frank and Joe remained speechless, watching their friend's father literally break down. Chief McGinnis started barking orders to his men on duty and off in the crowd before turning to Carson.

"Are you coming?" he asked, placing his hand on Carson's shoulders. He knew Carson felt what he did was best but it turned out to be a huge mistake. One that would change the entire town's normal, everyday life. People believe what they hear, even without evidence to back it up, and this might come as a huge blow to Carson's own image. Carson nodded, slowly rising from the chair and handing Frank the keys to the car. They needed to find out what happened, all of them regretting that they didn't go home to check on Nancy and Hannah just an hour before. Maybe the outcome of the night would have been different.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

"Well, that was fun!" said James. He loved the look on Carson's face right before he shut the screen camera off. Good thing James had an insider at the banquet to post a secret camera on stage so he could see the reactions. And they were priceless! Something he will cherish the rest of his life. He was surprised though to see his mother in the audience. He would have thought she hated Carson for what he did to him. But then again, she may not know everything that went on back then. She was kind of a simpleton. He looked to Missing Teeth, who was sitting in the bucket seat next to James in the van. "Maddox, you told me you found few things but not a lot. Am I correct?"

"Yes, sir," Maddox replied, holding his nose slightly. It was rather large from when Nancy drop kicked him in the face but he seemed to be recovering from the ordeal rather well, though his voice was more nasal than before. "The man seems like a saint and the only bad things that he did was around 25 years ago. I did, though, find some financial paperwork from the charities he deals with that may come in handy for you later once you get a better look at them."

"Good job on finding those spreadsheets," James replied. "You may not be a complete idiot after all. Everything else you have already told me before and I don't care. We will find something even if I have to make something up to frame him." He looked to the back end of the van where Nancy was sprawled out on the back seat, her left arm extended as Sage was trying to clean up the small wound from the broken needle. "How is she, Sage?"

"Other than being a bitch for fighting with me, she's okay," Sage replied bitterly. "The needle is still stuck in her arm and it's too deep to get out while we're moving."

"Well, that's what happens when you jam a syringe into someone's arm while they're struggling!" yelled James angrily. He was starting to regret hiring these thugs from Chicago but he needed the help since his own men were wanted internationally and their arrival here had to be carefully planned and executed to perfection so as not arouse Homeland Security. "I told you she wasn't to be harmed in any way! Not only did you beat up on her…"

"Hey! How were we to know she could fight?" cried Crooked Smile from the front passenger seat. James gave him an evil look and the man turned around and shut his mouth.

"But you also killed someone who she seemed to care very deeply for!"

"That was Dawson's fault, man!" yelled Maddox. "The little punk had it coming to him anyway being so trigger happy but you didn't have to leave him behind! It could lead back to us!"

"That's not my problem," James seethed. "The police can look at who that kid was all they want but he was street hustler who had no family whatsoever. They will run into dead ends. Period. She was whole reason why I needed all of you! And it turned out to be almost an utter disaster because you underestimated her! She beat the shit out of you and Tom here because she knew how to handle herself."

"And you didn't bother to tell us that," cried Tom, getting his nerve back again to speak out. "I won't be able to be with my girl for a week because of her!" He settled the bag of ice back on his groin and sighed relief.

"Again, not my problem that a girl half your size beat you up," answered James, holding his hands up in defense. "Besides, Dr. Cox will take good care of all of you after he takes care of her. And, if I ever catch any of hurting her again, you'll end up like poor Dawson. Are we clear?"

"Crystal," muttered Maddox, crossing his arms in defeat. He mumbled something else but it was incoherent.

"I just wish though you could have let me mess up the old lady," stated Sage, who gave up on helping Nancy. She wanted to kick the girl so bad since gave Sage a nice bruise on her eye and she could have sworn that some of her hair was pulled out at one point. James turned around and glared at Sage. She glared right back until she lost heart when he pulled out the same gun that killed Dawson earlier. "Ok, I'm sorry. I'll never bring it up again."

"Good," James replied, putting the gun away. Behind him, Sage stuck out her tongue at him but he didn't move again. James apparently brushed her off. "Now, we have work to do when we get back to the house. I'll fill you in when we get there and please, follow these directions a little better than you did at Drew's house."

* * *

Sirens blaring, Chief McGinnis shouted orders into the radio to dispatch. He wanted more men patrolling and stopping any vehicle that looked suspicious. Plus he wanted EMTs and anyone else available to get to the Drew residence on the double. McGinnis didn't know what to expect when they got there but he figured they would need all the help they could get.

The police cars pulled up to the Drew house, McGinnis noticing a couple of cars in the round about driveway, one of which looked familiar. The house itself was dark and ominous looking, not even the outside lights were on.

"Wenchel! Gates!" McGinnis shouted and two men snapped to order. "With me to the front! Cryer! Donaldsen! Go around back to check the back door!" A male and female officer nodded and each went around opposite ends of the house. "I want a perimeter around this house! Now! No one gets in unless I say so! Let's go!"

McGinnis led Wenchel and Gates slowly to the front door. He clicked his flashlight on and readied his gun. They instantly noticed the door was slightly ajar. _Not good._ Instead of breaking down the door, McGinnis slowly pushed the door open, his gun and flashlight poised together. As the door creaked open, he immediately saw the foyer table destroyed, specks of vase and drywall on the floor, shimmering in the beam of his flashlight. McGinnis flicked the light switch just inside the door, illuminating the rest of the foyer and just into the main hallway where he saw what he dreaded most. He silently motioned for the two officers to split up with one going to the living room and the other to the dining room. McGinnis took off his hat, walking to Ned and bending over to check for a pulse. When he found none, he dropped his head in remorse. It was not something he looked forward to telling the family of this poor man.

"Sir! There's someone here!" It was Gates who yelled from the dining room. McGinnis rushed into the dining room now lit up, to see the officer trying to untie a struggling Hannah. She was hysterical, afraid of the touch from Gates. McGinnis placed a hand on the officer's shoulder, ordered him up and leaned down to Hannah. She allowed him to untie, calming down just a bit but still shaking. He wrapped his strong arms around her as she sobbed loudly into his shoulder. McGinnis soon saw why the woman was so unnerved. There was another body just inches from where she was forced to sit. The man was not someone McGinnis knew but he was very young and stared blankly with a bullet in his forehead.

"Get an EMT in here," McGinnis said calmly, soothing Hannah by rocking her in place. "Call the coroner, and cover the bodies up before someone else sees."

McGinnis heard shouting coming from outside and guided Hannah off the floor and into the hands of the female officer, Donaldsen, who came in through the kitchen. McGinnis knew who was yelling and was not looking forward to what he had to do.

"Check the rest of the house," he ordered as he passed the other officers. The EMT crew came in with their gear, first checking Ned then moved on to Hannah in the other room when the chief gestured them to the dining room. As he walked into the foyer, McGinnis noticed the front door was open slightly. He grabbed a hold of Wenchel, who was standing nearby, and pulled him to the door. "You're job right now is to stand outside that door and make sure it stays closed at all times. I don't want anyone to see what's right inside the door. We don't need a panic to form."

Wenchel nodded nervously and followed McGinnis outside to the circus that was forming outside. He pulled the door behind him and McGinnis, making sure that the door was unlocked but latched securely.

McGinnis saw Carson and the Hardys at the edge of the police line, arguing with an officer to get in. He put on his best face, carefully approaching the group which stopped arguing the moment Carson saw McGinnis.

"Please, Chief," Carson pleaded, his anger gone almost instantly, the father in him coming out. "Are they all right? I need to know."

"Let the through, Cafferty," McGinnis said, lifting the police tape to let the trio in. The officer nodded and took his place again at the police line. "I've got this."

"I want to go in!" cried Carson, his voice slightly breaking.

"No, Carson. You don't," was all McGinnis could say. He had never seen Carson this way. Ever. As a father he understood that if anything happened to his kids, he would probably act the same way as Carson then he would do everything in his power to go after the people who did it. McGinnis heard clicking nearby, looking in the direction to see reporters and photographers trying to get a lead on what was going on in the house and a reaction from Carson. He guided Carson and the Hardys away from the media circus into the side driveway of the house.

"What happened? Please."

McGinnis sighed trying to find the right words to say to his longtime friend. He bowed his head, rubbing his eyes to mask the tears. Carson tried to run around McGinnis towards the back of the house but the chief was able to hold him back with the help of Frank and Joe. "Look! I can't let you in the there!"

Carson stopped struggling, tears flowing wildly down his cheeks. "Please," he whispered as Frank held him. "Just tell me, is she ok?"

"I don't know," McGinnis said honestly, knowing who Carson was asking about. "We…we haven't found her yet."

"No!" screamed Carson, causing every eye and camera to look his way. He tried to shove McGinnis out of his way again but with the help of Frank and Joe, the chief was able to maneuver Carson around the corner to the back of the house so the media could no longer film them. Several officers nearby started to come to their aid but McGinnis held them back with his hand.

"Listen!" Frank yelled. "Mr. Drew, you are not going to help Nancy or Hannah if you don't calm down! Chief, can you at least tell us what's going on inside? Is Hannah ok?"

"Hannah was in the dining room," McGinnis began quietly. Carson took a breath and held it fearing the worst. "She's unharmed as far as we can tell but she's very shaken up from what she saw."

"Oh, thank God!" cried Carson, calming down a bit at the news. "Can we see her?"

"You know what needs to happen next, Carson. We need to get her statement but I'm not sure if we will be able to." Carson was shocked to hear the words from McGinnis. He wondered what could have happened inside his home that would bring Hannah to tears like this. "I may need your help to stay with her as we hear from. For support."

"Of course," Carson nodded, ready to help.

"Was there anyone else in the house?" Joe asked, solemnly. "We saw a couple of cars in front of the house that weren't police cars."

"Erm, yes," McGinnis said hesitantly. He looked a bit sad at this, knowing what was coming next. "Carson, did you ask anyone to come to the house to pick up Nancy and Hannah?"

"Yes, I sent…no," Carson walked away knowing what McGinnis was trying to say without really saying it. _Please God no._ Carson sat down on one of the frozen lawn chairs and put his head in his hands. "Is he ok?"

The silence that came next was all that Carson needed to know his answer. McGinnis fumbled with his fingers trying to find the right words but nothing came out except a few tears of his own. He'd known the Nickerson family for a long time and watched Ned grow up and go off to college. The reality was starting to set in for the group as to what had happened inside the house. McGinnis cleared his throat to get Carson's attention and ordered an officer to walk him inside to be with Hannah. The chief then looked to the Hardys.

"I know you two are close to this case but do you think you can handle what's inside if I hire you on to help?"

"We will help in any way we can as long as we are allowed to," Frank said. Joe nodded in agreement.

"Just so you know, normally, I can't allow you in on this," McGinnis said. "But I know you as well as I know Nancy and you wouldn't follow my orders to stay away anyway. Am I right?"

"Probably not, Chief," laughed Joe, trying to lighten the mood. "We would probably get in the way every time you got a lead."

"I know," agreed McGinnis. "Besides, I think Nancy would hurt me if she knew I stopped you from helping to find her. You will keep me posted on everything you find, though right?"

"Yes, sir," Frank said. Joe saluted to the chief but was given a dirty look in return. "We won't let Nancy down. Or Mr. Drew. Where and when do you want us to start, Chief?"

"Well, as long as you're game to start this in your evening best, how about now and upstairs?"

"You got it."

"Thanks, boys," McGinnis said. "I'd rather have you on anyway because you may see something or find something we don't. Besides James doesn't know you as we do. He may underestimate you. I'll have some officers bring you gear to help in the investigation but I do ask one favor from the two of you."

"What's that, chief?" asked Joe.

"If you mention one word outside this house to anyone other than myself or another police officer or detective, I will personally bump both your asses back to Bayside."

"Bayport," the brothers corrected together.

"Wherever," McGinnis said irritated. He was wondering if he was making a mistake in hiring them on. He motioned for an officer to come over and ordered her to go get a small kit from the trucks for each of the Hardys. When she returned and handed them to the brothers, McGinnis excused himself to go find the Nickerson family, leaving Joe and Frank to walk inside to start investigating the events of the night. They wondered if they would find anything that would lead them to Nancy or if they would come up to brick wall and never be able to find her.


	8. Chapter 8

_**Author's Note:**_

 _ **Well, I hope that you have all been well. I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to update and I am hoping to update more often. Please keep up with the reviews and let me know if there's anything you hate or truly love! I love getting feedback from people! Enjoy!**_

Chapter Eight

Frank undid his bowtie and led Joe into the house. Joe took off his overcoat and jacket along with his bowtie, rolling up his sleeves. Carson sat in the chair next to Hannah who was bawling her eyes out. The man tried to consol her but even he was having a hard time coping with the events of the evening. They could see flashes of light coming from the dining room as someone took pictures for evidence.

As they began going upstairs to collect evidence, Frank noticed pictures hanging askew on the wall, some with their glass broken. Bits of drywall and paint dusted the floor as if there was a fight that progressed that way. Their thoughts were confirmed when the brothers walked down the hall where more photos and debris scattered the floor. A large hole in the drywall was directly across from a room with yellow caution tape across it. When they looked inside, they realized they were looking into Nancy's bedroom. It was practically destroyed, Joe letting out a low whistle in awe.

"I would hate to be on the receiving end of Nancy," Joe joked, setting his case down on the floor. He opened the case up to find not only a camera but evidence bags, tags, gloves and other things they would need to investigate the room. Joe put on a pair of gloves and grabbed the camera. He started to look around as Frank bent over to examine a large book on the floor that had what looked like a blood on its cover.

"Yeah, I know," Frank agreed, taking a picture of the book and blood. The two had seen Nancy in action before but have never had the privilege of receiving one of her signature drop kicks. "She sure does pack a wallop and whoever was here is probably still in a lot of pain."

"Look at this," Joe said, kneeling down and taking a picture of what looked like a tooth. He tagged it with a number, then took another picture and placed the tooth into an evidence bag. "Seems like someone's missing a tooth. Maybe they can analyze this down in the lab."

Frank smiled at the thought of Nancy kicking anyone who would try to assault her. She really did put up a good fight from the looks of the wrecked room and hallway. He wondered if there were any other places in the house that was mess from her fighting back.

The two continued to work on the room and into the hallway for the next hour, finding enough hair samples, fingerprints, and blood that the crime lab would have their hands full for a while. Everything was marked, photographed, and categorized ready for transport. Joe even laughed when he found another tooth and a glob of hair in the hole in the wall.

"That a girl!" he whooped. "Damn, Frank. Remind me never to get Nancy pissed."

"You Frank and Joe Hardy?" asked a tech with a badge in the hallway.

"Yes?" answered Frank, turning to the tech.

"The Chief wanted me to tell you he wants you both downstairs in the foyer, pronto." The Hardys nodded and headed towards the front stair to go downstairs when the tech yelled for them to stop. "You can't go down that way! Go around the back and work your way through the kitchen."

"Oh, ok," replied Joe turning around and following the tech down the back stairs to the kitchen. He wondered what would block the fastest way down to the foyer that the made the tech so adamant about it. While Hannah still sat at the table with the female officer, Carson was nowhere to be seen.

"Frank! Joe!" cried Hannah rising from the chair and rushing over to the brothers. She grabbed a hold of each one giving them bear hugs that Joe feigned not being able to breathe from her grip. Tears were running down her cheeks as she blubbered how much she appreciated them being there. "I'm sorry all this happened just as you visited but I'm sure once she returns, Nancy will be ecstatic to see the both of you!"

"I'm sure she will," Frank stated gently, a little concerned at how Hannah made it sound like Nancy was just down the street and would be back any minute. He wondered what kinds of things the poor woman had to endure over the past few hours. The female officer smiled at him as she guided Hannah back to the table and the waiting cup of tea. The Hardys left the two women, walking into the dining room. Frank immediately noticed the large blood splatter on the nicely painted walls.

"Woah," muttered Joe, walking up behind his older brother. Two techs were collecting evidence with their own kits but stopped momentarily to look at Frank and Joe.

"Woah is right," said Chief McGInnis walking into the room from the foyer. "Did you find anything helpful upstairs?"

"Yep," Joe answered, holding up a few of his evidence bags.

"Good. Give them to Holden here." McGinnis pointed to one of the nearby techs who waved her hand. Joe gave everything they collected from Nancy's room and the hallway to the pretty brunette, smiling his signature Hardy smile. She flashed her own smile back, blushing slightly. Frank rolled his eyes. Even though Joe had a girlfriend back in Bayport, he always seems to flirt with every girl he came across on their trips. "Come on lover boy," muttered McGinnis, grabbing a hold of Joe's collar and half-dragging him from the room. "You're going to want to wipe the smile off your face when you come in here."

"Sorry, sir," Joe said, literally wiping the smile off his face in mockery. His mood soon changed though when he saw what McGinnis meant as they stepped into the foyer. Two men from the coroner's office were gently lifting a black body bag onto a lowered gurney. Carson stood in the frame to the living room, arms hanging at his sides. He looked defeated as if he lost all hope. Frank and Joe knew who Carson had sent to the house earlier that evening but secretly hoped their longtime friend would pop out and surprise them somewhere. The look on Carson's face told them the reality.

"I am not going to show you who that is though I suspect you already know," Chief McGinnis stated blankly. The silence from the Hardys was enough of an answer for him. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I know he was a friend of yours, Frank and Joe. And you, Carson, knew him longer. It's not easy for me either but we have to press on. It's what…Ned would have wanted. Same thing with Nancy. I want this bastard found and brought to justice. I wouldn't mind it though if he was skewered and roasting in Hell but I don't think we can guarantee that."

Joe laughed at this but stopped when realized no one else laughed. They all gave him blank stares. He cleared his throat and mumbled "Tough crowd" under his breath. Frank gave him a dirty look but eventually ignored his younger brother.

"What do you need us to do since we're done upstairs?" Frank asked, changing the subject.

"First of all, Carson, why are you in here?" McGinnis looked to his longtime friend with concern.

"I needed to see if it was true about Ned," Carson sputtered. "I…I can't believe this is happening. Not like this! He didn't deserve this and neither does Nancy! I want her back! Please, bring her back!"

Frank looked sadly at Carson pleading to him. He didn't know what to say because he was virtually feeling almost the same way. Sure, Nancy, Joe, and him were close but Nancy meant a lot more to him than he let on sometimes. She was a spitfire that lit up a room any time she was around. To see her father in this way was like losing that spark of life. He wished he could do more for Carson than just help out with the police. Frank looked to Joe who looked right back in agreement. They needed to do everything in their power to find their best friend.

"Carson, I understand what you're going through," McGinnis calmly said, walking over wrap his arm around his friend. "We will get through this and we will find her. Mark my words. Now, you go back to Hannah. The two of you need each other now more than ever."

Carson returned the embrace, the reluctantly walked to the dining room to return to Hannah but stopped once he got to the Hardys. "You find her. Both of you. I trust you." The Hardys nodded and Carson left downtrodden.

The coroner's men stood, waiting for orders from McGinnis, quietly listening to the conversation but keeping to themselves. They tapped the Chief on the shoulder to get his attention.

"The other bag is already out in the van," asked the larger man. "Do you want this one to be taken out now?"

"Yes," McGinnis said sadly, looking at the bag again. He remembered the heartache he had to endure when he told Ned's mother just an hour before. She was devastated that her only son was gone. She wasn't outside anymore as a friend had taken her home but she asked McGinnis to find who did this and stop him. "Be careful. Please respect the person who's gone."

McGinnis, Frank, and Joe watched silently as the body was slowly taken outside, flashing lights and questions were abuzz. The reporters tried to get a closer look to maybe see who it was but other officers held them at bay while the coroner's men raised the gurney into the van and closed the doors. The front door was closed by Wenchel who still stood guard at the door to make sure no one saw what was going on inside.

"I hope that was motivation enough for you two to move your asses," McGinnis said gruffly though a hint of a sniff was heard right before he spoke. "Nancy is the priority. Not James. Understand?"

"Yes, Chief," Frank and Joe said together. They were both angry but eager to get moving on the investigation. Joe looked around the foyer and whistled again.

"You have something to say, Hardy?"

"Well, did um…Nancy do this too?" Joe pointed to the ruined foyer table and broken vase on the floor.

"I'm not really sure but I'm assuming that someone was really not happy here hence the mess but I was just on my way to see if Hannah was ready to talk," Chief McGinnis said. "Maybe she can enlighten us on what happened here. Care to join me?"

"Absolutely." The brothers followed the Chief into the dining room where the tech was just finishing up and putting the evidence away. She flashed another smile to Joe as he passed.

"Holden, will you and Officer Gates take the evidence to the lab to be processed immediately?" McGinnis asked, stopping right at the kitchen door. Carson could be seen sitting next to Hannah once again, their hands entwined together and watching McGinnis approach.

"Yes, Chief."

"I want that evidence gone through thoroughly with a fine-toothed comb," he added and she nodded in acknowledgment. "We just have speculation as to what went on here earlier this evening and we to need to find out fast."

"I know," replied a small voice form the kitchen. McGinnis turned toward the kitchen with Hannah standing tall at the table. She held a look of strength and determination in the face of the tragedy and heartache she had to endure that evening. "I'm ready."

The van pulled up to a large gate and honked the horn. The mechanical gate slowly opened revealed a long driveway. The group did not have far to drive from the Drew house as their final destination was just outside of town in the middle of nowhere. The house the van pulled up to was large and very beautiful with a fountain in the circular driveway and ivy walking up the brick. James had bought the place just a few weeks before with cash. He wanted to be close to where he could get away fast enough but far enough away that no one would figure out where they were.

The van stopped in front of the large wooden door where an older man stood with what looked like a doctor's satchel in his hands. Another van pulled up behind the first one where the rest of James' hired men piled out of. With the help of Sage and Maddox, James carefully lifted Nancy out of the van, her head nestled on his shoulder and her injured arm dangling at her side.

"What happened?" the man asked impatiently. "This was supposed to be an easy grab and go, James."

"I know, Dr. Cox," answered James looking slightly uncomfortable. Dr. Cox showed an air of superiority almost as if he were the boss, not James. "We had a few hiccups plus I sent a message personally to Carson. He'll be eating out of our hands soon enough."

"That may be the case but you didn't need to leave a few dead bodies in your wake."

"How do you know that?" cried James, following the doctor into the house.

"I'm psychic," Dr. Cox said sarcastically. "Besides it's all over the police banner, genius. How did that happen?"

"Someone came by, Dawson got a little excited and pulled the trigger before I could stop him. It was unfortunate that it happened but there was nothing I could do." Dr. Cox led James into the large foyer of the house, a staircase wrapping itself along the wall to the upstairs. As the good doctor led the way upstairs, the hired men and Sage stayed below, watching James then headed to another part of the house. "I didn't want it to happen since I want her to learn to trust me but there was virtually no way to stop Dawson."

"There's always a way, James," Dr. Cox replied. "And believe me, she'll trust you in the end more than you know."

The doctor opened the door to a room already set up for a woman. A beautiful 4-poster bed with deep purple canopy curtains and a matching comforter took up only a small portion of the room while a fire was already blazing in the fireplace. Two female attendants stood at ready in order to assist the doctor.

"Put her here on the bed, James and I'll check her over," Dr. Cox said after he put a towel onto the bed to stop the comforter from getting destroyed. James gently lowered Nancy on to the bed, her hair a mass of tangles that he had a hard time smoothing it out. She lay there so quietly he almost thought she was dead then she took a deep breath, calming his fears.

"What the hell happened to her?" Dr. Cox asked examining her arm where the needle broke off. It was turning an odd color and very swollen, indicating that an infection was already be settling in. He then noticed a few bruises on her face including one near her swollen lip. "I hope this wasn't you who did this, James."

"No, absolutely not," James stated matter-of-factly. "I would never harm her in any way. It was Maddox who gave her the bruises on her face because she fought back. Sage broke the needle in her arm from the syringe you gave her."

"Idiots!" Dr. Cox cried. After putting on a pair of gloves from his bag, he poked around Nancy's arm looking for the needle, soon finding it and marked the spot with a finger. His other hand searched his bag for something to use to get the needle out. He produced a scalpel and made a small cut on her arm, a trickle of blood coming down. He pulled the needle out with a small pair of forceps, lifting it up to examine it closer. Satisfied with what he saw, Dr. Cox cleaned up the incision and bandaged the arm up without stitching it. He then pulled out another syringe and small bottle, filling the syringe with fluid. He tapped it to let the air bubbles out and properly gave the medicine to Nancy. "I did not give her that syringe to flaunt it around. Sage could have killed her when she did this. Now we'll have to monitor her before giving her anything else."

"But…"

"I know you're anxious to get started," interrupted Dr. Cox, gathering the bloody towel and bandages to be thrown away. "So am I. You are not the only one here who was hurt by Carson Drew and nothing would give me much pleasure than to see him suffer even more. But we have to be sure she is fine and able to take on what we have in store. What was in the syringe was a mild sedative but it might mix badly with what you gave her last night. I did not authorize you to take anything from me but I understand you were eager to get started and she just happened across your path at the right time."

"I'm sorry about that," James said, looking ashamed. He waited as Dr. Cox ordered the two attendants in the room to clean up Nancy and to stay with her until further notice, giving him any reports to him immediately. James then followed the doctor out of the room where he closed the door quietly. "Honestly, I didn't realize anything would happen if I gave her something. How long will it take for Nancy to recover from this?"

"I'm not sure, James," Dr. Cox replied. They walked down the hall of the manor quietly, as the house settled in for the night. Most of the curtains in the hallway were drawn ready for the evening making the hallway rather dark. "It depends on what happens with this infection and how quickly the antibiotics I just gave her work. She needs to be under constant supervision until she wakes up then we will see what we can do next."

"Do we know what the police are doing?"

"As of right now, I am not sure since I have been dealing with your mishaps but I'm sure that they are just following protocol and investigating. Leaving a few dead bodies at the house, although unfortunate, will keep them busy for a time. My informant will keep me posted of anything important."

"Who's the informant?" James asked quizzically. He didn't know that Dr. Cox had anyone who was giving up any information. It seemed odd that the doctor never told him about that plus a few other things.

"Well, that is a conversation best meant for another time, James. I must attend to the geniuses that we hired and make sure that all preparations are in place. We don't want our plan to go awry before it starts. Now, you go get some sleep and I'll let you know when she wakes."

"Ok, good night then." James watched Dr. Cox walk down the stairs, leaving him in silence and confusion. He put his hand on the door and realized that he really didn't want to go to bed at that moment. James thought for a few seconds, wondering if Dr. Cox was crazier and more dangerous than he was for everything that he was keeping from him. He let go of the handle to the door and headed back towards Nancy's room. James didn't care what Dr. Cox thought about him watching her sleep. He just wanted to make sure she was ok.

He remembered what Kate was like so many years before, loving her every second she was with him but his anger got the better of him when he realized that she left him for someone of lesser value. James knew he would never intentionally harm Nancy but he would only if had to. He wanted to show Carson a thing or two about real love. The love he had for Kate. James walked into the bedroom, where the attendants just finished redressing Nancy on the bed. They were covering her up when he ordered them out of the room.

When the women left, James walked up to the bed to watch Nancy sleep. He caressed her cheek so lightly, it barely brushed her skin. From that moment, James felt more like a father than before. He loved her instantly and wanted nothing better than to have a close relationship with her as father and daughter, just like she had with Carson. James knew this was going to be a challenge but he also knew that he was up for the task. He was going to do everything in his power to make sure it happened and to show up Carson once and for all.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Frank was worried and it showed. He, along with Chief McGinnis, Carson, and Joe, listened to Hannah recall the entire evening for the past few hours. No one would have expected anything like it to happen especially not in the way it turned out. To hear that Ned's death was an accident infuriated him just as much as hearing about James telling Nancy that she was raised on a lie. He felt guilty too since the whole thing could have been avoided if he trusted his instincts and rushed here after they arrived in River Heights. Frank was kicking himself for believing that everything was okay when in reality it wasn't. Ned would still be alive and Nancy would be sitting with them right now. He looked over at Carson and Hannah who were just finishing up with Chief McGinnis. The house was quiet since all the techs left and McGinnis kept only a few officers, including those outside who were keeping the reporters at bay.

"So, what do you think?" asked Joe, interrupting Frank's thoughts.

"I don't know what to think anymore," Frank said blankly. "And I really don't know where to begin with any of the clues. I feel like my brain is going in so many directions at once. What are they going to do with the missing files? What is going to happen to Nancy? Is she okay? All the thoughts are running through my head and I have no idea how to stop them."

Frank ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. Joe rarely ever seen this side of his older brother and he never liked it when he did. Nancy was one of their closest friends, especially for Frank. The two always had a special bond that even Joe never really understood. Sometimes they even finish each other's thoughts and sentences, which really creeped Joe out at times. Frank always seemed more complete whenever Nancy was around even when the two were dating others. To see his older brother not knowing what to do to find Nancy is almost like watching hope die.

Although they helped collect evidence, the Hardys decided against going through everything with the techs. Well, at least Frank didn't want to go since he wanted to stay and hear what Hannah had to say. Joe, on the other hand, wanted to go "help" the pretty tech named Holden but the look on Frank's face convinced him otherwise.

"I don't want you staying here tonight," replied Chief McGinnis to Carson and Hannah. The three walked into the kitchen where the Hardys were waiting for them to finish. "We don't know if they'll be back at all plus the fact that it's still a crime scene."

"Believe me, Chief," Hannah said quietly. "I don't want to be here any longer than necessary. Carson is the one who may need some convincing."

"Well, where do you suggest we go anyway, Chief?" Carson replied impatiently, arms folded across his chest. It was the first time all night that Frank and Joe had seen this side of Carson. They knew he wanted to find Nancy but Carson staying at home is the last thing any of them would want. "Besides, I highly doubt that anyone would want me around after what James said at the banquet. You saw their faces! Half of them were more angry with me than I am with James! All because I decided to keep it secret that he was alive. I could barely tell Nancy yesterday and still didn't tell her the whole truth! If they continue to pound on her the lies James was saying, this would be just icing on the cake to convince her!"

"Calm down, Carson," McGinnis said calmly.

"I can't calm down, Chief! Would you if you were in my shoes?!" Carson looked at the chief for an answer but McGinnis remained silent, biting his lower lip. Carson's eyes had a fire to them but began welling up with tears as he continued. "Exactly! I can't even begin to wonder what is happening to her! I just can't! She is my whole world and I would do anything to take back everything that has hurt her, especially the things I've said and done in the past few days. I just hope that she forgives me for what keeping it from her. She never knew what her mother and I went through those first few months we were together. James was a psychopath then and, from the look of it, still is! Kate saw it too and it's why she came to me all those years ago. We had to keep our relationship a secret from James just so he wouldn't hurt either one of us and you know he would have! If he thinks he's going to convince Nancy to betray me, he's got another thing coming. She's a lot stronger than I give her credit for. I knew he was out there but I never expected this. Never. He wasn't the type to have this kind of plan. He was always the go-getter for somebody else and he did bad things. I knew this and, yes, I kept it a secret. So did Kate. She didn't have the heart to turn him in and neither did I. I did it for her. I just hope that Nancy sees through him."

The room was silent from this revelation. Frank and Joe stood awkwardly in the kitchen wondering if it was something they should have heard. McGinnis just stood there, his eyes on the ground, thinking. Hannah looked at Carson in shock and anger. A moment later, she slapped him across the face and stormed upstairs. Carson held his hand to his cheek, feeling the burn of the slap. He knew he deserved it because not even Hannah knew what he just said. He felt awful keeping such information from not only Nancy but also a close friend.

"I'll make arrangements for you and Hannah, Carson," McGinnis cleared his throat. He looked to the Hardys but didn't say anything. They just knew what he wanted. "Do you need a place to stay too?"

"Yes, I think we should go, too," answered Joe when Frank didn't say anything. He was looking at the ground, his mind oblivious to what was being said. McGinnis nodded his head and walked away, whipping out his phone and barking orders into it. Joe put his hand on Frank's shoulder but his older brother was still a million miles away. He wondered what it was going to take for Frank to get out of this rut.

"Excuse me," Carson said. He walked solemnly up the stairs head down, following the sound of sobs from Hannah. The Hardys could hear him talking calmly to her and then silence, while she sobbed.

Frank watched Carson leave. He wanted to do something, anything that would change the course of events. He felt Joe's hand on his shoulder and reached for it with his own hand, acknowledging the gesture to his brother. Joe may be thick-headed at times but when the moment was needed, he was always there to be the stronger person. Frank thoughts returned to Nancy. He felt that there was something hanging over his head that couldn't quite place. A clue that would lead them to her but he just couldn't figure it out for some reason. He remembered when Carson called them just yesterday and invited them to visit for Nancy's sake. Frank was ecstatic to come, knowing that he was going to see her again. They hadn't been in touch in a while nor had they seen each other on a whim like they used to. Their last phone conversation was months ago and was more of a "hi" and "bye" type conversation. He missed their collaborations together from them running into each other all over the world to asking each other for help on a case. Their lives though had gotten busier as they reality of adulthood settled in. Frank and Joe worked with their father as private investigators with some dabbling with government contacts. They never chose a different path. Nancy, on the other hand, chose to be an investigative reporter instead. It had its perks since she mainly worked when she wanted to but it also caused her to be extremely busy at times.

"Earth to Frank?" Joe waved his hand in front of his brother's face, interrupting Frank's thoughts again. He looked to his younger brother and blinked as if he didn't know Joe was standing right next to him. "You thinking about her?"

"Is it that obvious?" Frank rubbed his hands over his face. "I just wish there was a clue so obvious that finding Nancy would be a breeze."

"I know. Sucks, doesn't it?" Joe asked nonchalantly. He walked over to a cupboard in the kitchen and started rifling through, looking for something to eat. He found a box of crackers and started chowing down on them. "I want to find her too but not on an empty stomach."

"You know we're guests here, right?" Frank rolled his eyes. Only his brother could take a tender moment and turn it into a meal. "We're also leaving soon."

"Yeah, but you know Hannah usually doesn't care as long as I don't leave a mess. I know we're leaving soon. Better be soon. I want out of this monkey suit!"

"Okay, whatever." Frank watched his brother devour the crackers, the notion of eating the furthest thing from his own mind.

"You're doing it again, big brother," replied Joe in between chews. He pulled a glass from a cupboard and filled it at the refrigerator. "What's on your mind anyway? I mean, I know it's about Nancy but you seem like you're on another planet or something."

"I'm just worried," Frank shrugged his shoulders. He sat down at the island as Joe got him a glass of water as well. Frank took a sip, realized he was more thirsty than he thought and downed the whole glass. "I guess I just need to see what we can do to find Nancy. It also sounded like she was hurt from what Hannah said."

"Anything could have happened but you heard Hannah. James didn't want anything to happen to anyone, which sounds a little weird considering what Carson just told us about his character."

"Yeah, I thought that was a little weird myself. It seems like either James changed over the past twenty-five years or he was never a psycho to begin with. I don't know what to think about that."

"Well, Frank. You know you can talk to me about anything, right?" Joe said, taking a few drinks of his water. "I may have issues but I know when something is troubling you."

"You're right, Joe," Frank finally said. "With Nancy, I really care about her. More than you know."

"Dude, I see it all the time," Joe stopped him. "The way you two can be is almost creepy. I just don't get why you two never 'got together,' you know?"

"Joe, that's none of your business and you know it," Frank said defensively. He didn't like where this conversation was going and he really didn't feel it was the right time to have it, especially with Joe.

"Hey, I'm just calling it like it is," Joe raised his hands in the air. "What about Callie? Whatever happened between you two?"

"Okay, now you're going too far. What does Callie have to do with Nancy?" Frank had raised his voice, causing Joe to take a step back.

"Sorry, bro. I didn't know it was a touchy subject." Joe didn't say anything more when he heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Everything all right?" asked Carson as he stepped down onto the landing. He carried two suitcases while Hannah came up behind him with a carry-on bag. They seemed to have reconciled from earlier.

"Yeah, everything is great, for now. I guess," Frank stammered not knowing what to say. He felt guilty for almost opening up about his personal life with Joe while Carson and Hannah's lives were being turned upside down.

"You're lying, Frank and that's not like you," Hannah replied. She turned her gaze to Joe and the empty cracker box sitting on the counter, narrowing her eyes. "I expect that box to be in the recycling bi when you're done, Joseph."

"Yes, ma'am." Joe then stated under his breath. "Geez, Cracker Police."

"What was that, Joseph?" asked Hannah.

"Nothing."

"Is everyone ready? I got you all adjacent hotel rooms," Chief McGinnis said, walking back into the room. "I'll help you get over there with an escort and have someone on duty in a nearby room at all times." He turned to the Hardys. "I know that James doesn't know you but I would prefer it if you two would check in with officer on duty whenever you leave and return. Can you do that?"

"Yes, Chief," answered Joe, saluting.

"Knock it off, Hardy." McGinnis shifted his gaze to Carson. "I had my men move your car to the side driveway. It's ready when you are."

"Well, let's go then," replied Carson.

"Are we all going to fit into your car, Mr. D.?" asked Joe, following behind Carson and Chief McGinnis.

"Well, you could take my car, if you'd like," answered Hannah. She grabbed her keys on the way out the door and handed them to Joe. He was surprised that she trusted him with her car but then he looked over at Frank and knew why. His brother looked lost walking behind everyone and almost bumped into Joe when he stopped in the driveway. Joe knew something was really wrong with Frank and he was hell bent on finding out what.

"Be careful, Joe," Hannah warned, getting into the passenger seat of Carson's car.

"We'll see you at the Hotel Victory," Chief McGinnis said, waving to the Hardys before they entered the garage to get Hannah's car. They watched as the cruiser in front move forward slowly with Carson's car close behind. The swarm of reporters anxiously waited at the end of the driveway to get a glimpse of Carson and Hannah as they left.

Joe led Frank into the garage, hitting the light switch and the lights illuminated two cars in the three-car garage. Joe was surprised to see that Hannah drove a small SUV, expecting more of a hatchback or smart car instead. Then his eyes settled on the other car at the far end and he became slightly downtrodden. Joe watched as Frank walked to Nancy's car, a cherry red Mustang convertible. He placed his hand on the trunk of the car and stared. The two brothers stood in silence for a few minutes, neither one knowing what to say.

"We need to find her," Frank said quietly, breaking the silence. Joe almost didn't hear him at first.

"I know, Frank," Joe said impatiently. He wanted to get going but knew if he said that, Frank may hurt him. Frank, though, turned around, startling Joe with the look on his face.

"No, Joe," Frank said a little louder. "You don't know. We need to find her and now. There's no way we're going home until we do. We owe it to Mr. Drew and Hannah. Hell, we owe it to Ned, too. They want her back just as much as I do. It's our duty as her friends to find her no matter what the cost. Do you understand me?"

Joe looked at his brother, thinking. He didn't know what to say and he didn't quite understand why Frank was acting the way he was.

"Okay, I guess," Joe finally said. He smiled broadly trying to break the ice in the room. "Hey, I told you, you should have packed more."


	10. Chapter 10

_**Author' Note:**_

 _ **I know I just updated yesterday but this part was supposed to be in the last chapter but that chapter turned out to be longer than I thought it was going to be. I had this one already written but just needed the time to publish it. Enjoy and don't forget to write your thoughts in the review section! Thanks for reading!**_

Chapter Ten

"What are you doing in here?"

James turned around in his chair to see Dr. Cox standing at the door. He could tell the doctor was not pleased to see him sitting and watching over Nancy.

"I told you to go to bed," Dr. Cox continued angrily. "Margot came to tell me you dismissed her and Emilie. Why? They are perfectly capable to watch over her."

"I wanted to be here when she woke up!" James cried. He also didn't trust anyone anymore after what happened at Drew's house. "I wasn't tired and I felt was my duty to sit next to her as she slept."

"Duty my ass!" Dr. Cox yelled back. He was about to say something else when he noticed something about Nancy. He walked over to her and began checking her over, muttering to himself. He checked her eyes with his flashlight but she didn't stir.

"What's wrong?" James asked anxiously. Dr. Cox didn't say anything but continued looking Nancy by touching her forehead and checking her pulse.

"I thought she was awake," Dr. Cox finally said. "She seems to be running a low grade fever but hopefully it won't get worse. Hopefully the antibiotics I gave her earlier will continue to keep the fever at bay. I want you to go get some sleep. Now. It may be a while before she wakes."  
"No. I want to be here," James argued.

"You're no good to me or her if you're dead tired so don't make me go all mad doctor on you!" Dr. Cox stared down James with the other man staring back. "I'll have Margot come get you if anything changes."

"Fine! She better come!" James stormed out of the room, almost slamming the door.

"God, he needs to act his age!" Dr. Cox smiled as James left knowing he completely lied to him. He looked down at Nancy who looked right back at him, her blue eyes staring at him with concern.

"Why did he storm out?" she asked softly.

"Well, my dear, he's concerned for you, as he should be," Dr. Cox calmly replied taking out a few things from his satchel. "How are you feeling?"

"A little tired and my arm hurts." She stole a look at her arm, noticing the white bandage. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"I am just a doctor here to help you." He smiled a kind smile though Nancy noticed it didn't reach his eyes. She felt a little wary of the doctor especially when he pulled a syringe out and began preparing it. "As to the where, I cannot tell you."

"What is that?" she whispered, panic starting to settle in as she watched the syringe closely.

"Oh, just something to make you more relaxed."

"Um, I think I'll pass." Nancy started to scoot her body away from him but he grabbed a hold of her wrist, pulling her back towards him. She started struggling with him, trying hard not to let the doctor near her with whatever was in the syringe. Her legs felt like jelly as she tried maneuvering them from the thick comforter but she was finally able to get the released. She kicked as hard as her jelly-like legs would let her, hitting his hand and knocking the syringe from his hand. He cursed her and the once kind smile turned into a grimace, angry at her for kicking him. Nancy pushed him off of her where he hit his head on the bedside table, knocking him out. She scrambled to the other side of the bed to get away from him. As she reached her feet to the floor, Nancy collapsed from weakness, her mind not sure as to why her legs couldn't hold her weight.

Not being able to move quickly, she half-crawled, half-scooted to an open door which turned out to be a bathroom. She closed the door as hard as she could and locked it. Nancy sat up against the tub, panting from exertion. She was not sure where she was but knew she had to get out of there or at least to a phone. Nancy took in her surroundings and noticed another door at the other side of the room. She started to feel her legs again, so she was able to stand and walk to the door with support from the walls and toilet.

Nancy slowly opened the other door, revealing an empty study. Her eyes caught a phone sitting on the large desk in the middle of the room and she slowly began making her way to it, wobbling this way and that. Reaching the phone, she began dialing the one number she desperately needed someone to answer from. Nancy stole a look at both doors to the room, knowing she only had one good chance at calling her dad and prayed he answered. The phone began ringing and soon she heard her father's distinct voice answering live.

"Dad!" Nancy mumbled into the phone, keeping her voice as low as possible.

"Nancy?" came Carson's worried voice. She heard Hannah squeal nearby and other voices that she recognized but couldn't quite place. "Where are you? I have you on speaker."

"I…I don't know," Nancy slurred her words. She was starting to feel lightheaded and could have sworn she heard something behind her. "Please…help."

"Oh, God," Carson said. "Don't worry. Help is on the way."

Nancy didn't hear anything else he said as a hand closed over her mouth and she felt a needle plunge into her neck. As she was closing into oblivion, she could have sworn she heard Frank Hardy's voice calling out to her along with her father's voice frantically crying her name over the phone. Dr. Cox held on to her as he hung up the phone on Carson.

* * *

"Nancy?" Carson cried into the phone but the line went dead. Although he could barely understand her, he knew it was Nancy. He looked around at Frank, Joe, and Hannah who all heard what she said on the phone. Frank had even tried to call for her, which was the first time he said anything since getting into the car with Joe to go to the hotel.

"Did she sound strange or was that just me?" Joe asked, looking around at the others. They all just settled in to their rooms when the call came in. Frank's face was stone white along with Hannah, who started to cry again. Carson put his arm around her to comfort her.

"Yes, she did," Carson agreed. "I'm really worried as to what ended the call. Did you hear something in the background?"

"Yeah, I did. I wish there was a way we could have recorded the call," Joe answered. He looked at Frank for help in this but the older Hardy looked as if he were deep in thought, lost to those around him. "Oh, I just wish I could get my hands around James and choke him to death!"

"Wait, what did you just say?" asked Frank, coming out of his trance.

"What? About strangling James?"

"No, the first thing. About recording the call?" Frank held up one finger and left the room. He returned moments later with his cell phone in his hand. "We may not have been able to record what she said, but there may be a way to get the information about the phone number she called from."

"How can you do that?" asked Carson, standing up from where he was with Hannah. "The number was from a private number. There wouldn't be a way to trace it. Would there?"

"I need my computer," Frank stated. He was getting frustrated with his phone trying to figure out something. "I know someone who can help us out on this but she doesn't use a phone. She only talks to people via her computer."

"Sounds like a real keeper there, Frank," joked Joe. "How did you meet her?"

"You know how I am when I'm down, Joe. So, I get online and start talking to people from everywhere." Joe looked at him incredulously. "What? I'm a computer geek and I like to meet new people. Besides, it helped me cope with the whole thing with Callie six months ago."

"And there it is!" cried Joe. "I knew there was something going on! You could have said something to me instead of going online!"

"Not the time or the place, Joe," Frank gave him a look that stopped Joe cold from saying anything more. "I think we have to work quickly to find Nancy and Kyla may be able to help."

"Chief McGinnis may be able to get you the computer you need," Carson said, looking hopeful.

"No, I need _my_ computer," Frank said. He began calling a number on his phone and someone soon picked up, a little mad at the late hour.

"What the hell is it, Frank?" asked Fenton Hardy on the other line. "It's 3 o'clock in the morning! This had better be a life-threatening or it will be when you get home!"

"Sorry, Dad, but I need your help." Joe looked at Frank in horror, knowing what Dad would do to him for waking him up in the middle of the night. Frank explained everything to his dad and expressed the need for his laptop. "Do you think you can overnight it for me?"

"I'll see what I can do," Fenton said, his anger dissipating. He always liked Nancy and wanted to help in any way he could. "You know this could have waited until I was up later."

"Thanks, Dad," Frank said, not wanting to answer his father. He ended the call and got a slap on the arm from Joe.

"What was that, calling Dad this early?" Joe cried. "You know he hates that! Besides, he would have killed me over the phone if I called! Why didn't he do that to you?"

"Because I'm his favorite, Joe," Frank smiled, walking into their room.

"What did you mean by needing to find Nancy quickly, Frank?" asked Carson, walking over to the open door.

"I just have this feeling, Mr. Drew, that something is not adding up and I'm worried we won't get to Nancy in time," Frank replied.

Joe knew his brother well enough to know that his hunches usually were on point and shouldn't be taken lightly. The feeling Frank had before the banquet should have been heeded instead of ignored.

"I also think they're nearby," Frank added. Hannah, Carson, and Joe all looked at him, shock written on their faces. "Think about it. They had that live video while they were driving somewhere. We knew that from the way he bounced and the lights passing by. The phone number itself can be located and I'm willing to bet that it came from nearby. Plus look at how quickly they disappeared. Hannah, you said yourself that you barely waited, what, an hour for the police to arrive. Right?"

"Are you sure, Frank?" Joe asked skeptically. He was happy to see his brother knocked out of his rut by the phone call from Nancy but this might be stretching it. "She could have made that phone call from an airplane for all we know."

"But there was no interference or background noise you would get from an airplane, Joe," Carson added, starting to agree with Frank. "It makes sense that they would be nearby."

"See?" Frank cried. "They couldn't be more than a hundred miles from here, if that. The police put out an APB moments after they arrived at the house with only a small description that they were driving a large vehicle. How many cars do you think could have been out on the road at the same time?"

"There's my brother we all know and love!" cried Joe, giving Frank a light punch in the arm. Whatever was bugging Frank before was gone and he seemed to be thinking clearly again.

"Joe, let's get moving and find a map," Frank said excitedly. He looked to Carson and Hannah. "Get some sleep. We'll keep you posted."

"Speaking of sleep," Joe yawned loudly. "You know it's the middle of the night."

Frank regarded his brother thoughtfully. He knew he couldn't help Nancy without sleep but he wanted so badly to get started. He yawned himself realizing what he had to do.

"Well, I guess we have to sleep before we do anything, huh?" he laughed before entering their shared hotel room.

"Good night," said Carson closing their connecting door.

Frank needed to find Nancy. It was all he could think of as he fell onto the bed. Within moments he was asleep but his last thoughts were of her. Joe was shocked when he came back from being in the bathroom. He saw Frank sprawled out on the bed, still wearing his tux and fast asleep. His light snores could be heard as Joe walked over to his brother and covered him up as best he could. As he got into his own bed, Joe was thinking the same thing Frank thought as he was falling asleep.

 _Don't worry, Nancy. We're coming._


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

James woke up hours later, the morning sun peeking through the almost closed curtains in his room. He showered and felt refreshed to start the day and hoped it would be a good day for him. Walking down the hall towards Nancy's room, he saw Maddox standing guard at the door.

"What's going?" James asked, frantically. "Is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine, James," answered Dr. Cox, walking up behind Maddox. "Why do you ask?"

Dr. Cox's sudden cheerfulness after the previous evening seemed to put James on edge. He had the strangest feeling that the doctor was keeping a few things from his. James' speculations grew to intensity when Sage came out of the room, a shimmer of a smile etched on her face. He didn't know if the woman was there to watch or if she had something to say.

"Don't worry, dear boy!" Dr. Cox lightly tapped James' cheek before leaning towards Sage who whispered in his ear. He as he listened to her, keeping watch on James out of the corner of his eye the whole time. James' face began getting red waiting for someone to tell him what was going on and once Sage returned to Nancy's room, he looked to the doctor, expecting an explanation. Dr. Cox took a hold of James' arm and guided him away from the door. "Did you have something to eat yet? I know I haven't and I'm famished!"

"Why aren't you telling me what's going on?" James asked, stealing a glance back at Maddox who smiled and waved goodbye to him. "Why do I get this feeling that you're doing something to Nancy without my consent?"

"Number one, I don't need your consent, James." Dr. Cox stopped on the steps to look at James, the politeness gone in his tone. "She is not yours yet. Number two, you are not in charge here anymore. I am. You work for me now. Although she was a part of the overall plan from the get-go, your infatuation with Nancy needs to stop. I know she looks incredibly like her mother but she is not going to replace Kate no matter what you do or say. Everything will come to fruition when the time is right but you need to give her space. She has a very strong will as evidenced from the previous bouts we've had with her over the past few days. Nancy will always be loyal to Carson and will always return to Carson, which is why we have a need for her."

"But you said we could start when she wakes up," James stammered almost childlike. "I wanted to be with her from the start."

"I know that but I unfortunately, I have already begun," Dr. Cox smiled. "You see, dear James, she was able to call Carson late last night, a move even you should have seen coming since you put a damn phone in the adjacent study to her room. Yes, she was able to get the better of me and was able to reach Carson before I could get under control but Carson will now be frantic to find her even more so than before. His whole life practically revolves around her and if anything bad were to befall her, he would be utterly devastated. As much as that would be fantastic in regards to us, it would be disastrous to our plans. Your little foolish plot has been dissolved and now, I'm dealing with her as best I can."

"No! This was my idea!" James cried, feeling betrayed by the man he trusted more than anything. "You need to listen to me!"

"No, _you_ listen!" Dr. Cox pointed his finger at James' chest. "I could have left you in that cell in the Philippines to rot! I offered you to take charge of this scheme because I knew how much you _hated_ Carson Drew! I needed your help just as much you needed mine! I thought I was getting the man who was cheated out of a great life by Carson and what do I get? A whiney, little piss ant inside a man's body! Get your balls in line or else!"

"Or else what?" asked James, folding his arms across his chest. "You'll kill me like _I_ killed Dawson? We agreed no one would be hurt but yet someone was, including Nancy because of your bungling for-hire idiots who couldn't keep their hands to themselves!"

"Yes, that was very unfortunate indeed," agreed Dr. Cox, nodding his head. "But he came in unexpectedly like you said and there was nothing that could be done to stop poor Dawson. Hannah was the only one who was to bear witness, like we planned, and relay the information to Carson and the police when necessary. She did so beautifully but now, you're compromising everything we have planned and worked for because you have gone gaga over this girl who may or may not be your child! Snap out of it!"

James looked at Dr. Cox and thought for a bit. He knew what the doctor was saying was correct ad he had been fantasizing a little bit too much. Nancy was something he needed to prove and his own revenge on Carson would be complete. But what Dr. Cox was doing was something completely different from what their original plans was to be. He learned a lot from being in that hell hole for fifteen years including being patient and keeping his temper at bay. James remembered hitting Kate while they were together, getting into a tizzy over not having dinner ready for him. He regretted every moment and believed he could change that with Nancy. What Dr. Cox wanted from him was the nasty side of James and he was worried that part of him would eventually hurt Nancy.

"What do you want me to do?" James asked, defeated.

"That's better." Dr. Cox smiled. "Let's go down to breakfast or brunch or whatever it is and talk about a few things."

* * *

"Good morning, sunshine," replied a cheerful voice. Frank lifted his head to see his brother smiling broadly at him and holding a steaming cup of coffee in his hand.

"What time is it?" Frank asked groggily, raising himself up from the bed. He looked down at his wrinkled tuxedo. "Did I really just sleep in this?"

"Yeah, bro," answered Joe. He laughed and handed Frank the cup. "You were exhausted I guess because when I came out of the bathroom from changing you were sound asleep. What happened?"

"I don't know," muttered Frank. He took a sip of the coffee then set it down on the bedside table. He rubbed his hands in to his face to wake himself up and stretched. "It was like I finally had the epiphany I needed to get moving and out of the rut I was in but all of a sudden I felt like I just needed to crash."

"Crash and burn, you did, man." Joe looked at him funny. "Well, let's get moving. Dad called an hour ago and he said he was on his here from New York with your laptop. He said it would be faster if he brought it instead of overnighting it. Plus the fact he wants to help and there's really nothing for him to do at the moment. Well, that's what he said anyway."

"Did I call Dad last night?" Frank asked. He couldn't remember a few of the things he did right before he fell asleep and that was one of them.

"Uh, yeah," Joe said dangling his feet from the end of the bed. "He was pretty mad that you didn't answer your phone but understood after I told him you were still asleep."

"Oh, okay." Frank walked over to his suitcase, rummaged through it and pulled out a change of clothes. "I'm going to shower and get cleaned up."

"All right. Dad will be here in two hours but at least we don't have to go get him from the airport, thankfully. Are you sure you can do what you say you can do?"

"Huh? Let me shower and I'll answer that later."

An hour later, Frank walked out of the bathroom, refreshed. He needed the extra time he spent in order to think without anyone bothering him and it paid off. Frank remembered what he was thinking last night and was ready to jump on it the moment his dad arrived with his laptop.

"Dude, an hour?" replied Joe from his bed. He was lounging on his back, watching the news.. "I'm starving and it's almost lunchtime!"

"Sorry," Frank answered, his eyes transfixed on the TV that was now muted. "I needed to think without you yammering at me about what we were going to do next. Turn the volume up on that, will you?"

 _"So far, the police have not given up the identities of the bodies found at the Drew residence last night,"_ replied the female reporter. Behind her was the Drew's house, police tape blocking off the front yard and police officers walking in and out of the house. Chief McGinnis was there as well as Carson Drew standing next to him. They pair disappeared into the house without speaking to the reporter. _"We have seen numerous police officers and investigators walking in and out of the house all morning, searching for clues as to the whereabouts of the perpetrators of this heinous act. We have seen both Carson Drew and his housekeeper Hannah Gruen, leave the home last night but there is no word as to the where Mr. Drew's daughter, Nancy, currently is. Speculation from neighbors around the residence is that she was taken by those who committed the murders inside the house last night. Police Chief McGinnis will be giving a statement within the hour and we will have more from River Heights as it happens. Back to you in the station."_

Joe muted it once again and dropped the remote onto the bed. He waited for Frank to say something but he noticed that his brother was not paying attention. There was a soft knock at the connecting door and when Frank sat down instead of answering it, Joe sighed and walked to the door to answer it.

"Hey, Hannah," he waved to her as he opened the door and walked away.

"Nice to see you too, Joe," Hannah said. She looked over at the TV and frowned. "I guess you already saw the news, huh? Carson went to see the chief this morning and he wanted him to come with him to the house. I think they found that some of his files were missing and the chief needed some insight as to what was missing."

"Really? Why would they take the files?" Joe asked, casting a glance at Frank who was still staring as he sat on the bed. He wondered why his older brother was so out of it again when he seemed to be fine moments ago. Maybe it had something to do with the newscast. "It seems rather odd that they would."

"We thought so too," Hannah answered. She looked at Frank too and frowned again. "Is there something going on that I need to know about? Or maybe I should leave?"

"Oh, no," stated Joe. "He's in his own little world again like he was last night. Not sure what's going on in his mind."

"Oh, okay. Well, I'm hoping that Carson returns soon so I know what is going on." Hannah looked down at her hands thoughtfully. Joe could tell the woman was on the verge of crying again so he walked over to her and put his arm comfortingly around her shoulders. She leaned her head against his chest and began sobbing. "I…I just ho…hope that she's okay. I really wa...want to believe it but I'm not so sure."

"I know. We all want her back." Joe looked over at Frank who was now looking at his thumbs twiddling in his lap. He hoped their father arrived soon with the laptop so Frank could get to work and out of his daze.

"I never met James before but from what Carson has said about him, he's not someone you want to mess with." Hannah pushed herself away from Joe's arms, wiping her face with her hands.

"Yeah, I get that vibe too," said Joe. Though Frank was still twiddling his thumbs he was paying attention somewhat to what Joe and Hannah were saying. Their conversation soon moved back to Nancy and all the good times they had in the past, almost as if she were already gone and she wasn't coming back.

Frank frowned a bit at their words, which tugged at his heart. He wanted more than anything to get started and get a hold of Kyla but without his laptop, Frank couldn't do anything. He started thinking about James, wondering if there wasn't' someone else out there pulling the strings or at least helping him. Joe and Hannah were right about James. It sounded like he either changed or he never was like the way Carson described him, which would contradict everything he told them all about James. The whole thing seemed fishy and Frank was bound and determined to find out what was really going on.

"Wasn't that a great night, Frank?" asked Joe. He looked at his older brother and sighed. Frank seemed to be in La La Land still and hadn't heard a word that Joe was saying.

"What?" asked Frank, knocking himself out of his thoughts. "What did you say?"

"Never mind. Obviously your head is not with us at the moment," Joe said sarcastically. Hannah looked at the two, baffled. "Again, don't mind him, Hannah. He just gets this way when he's trying to think."

"Shut up, Joe," Frank said angrily. "When is Ned's funeral going to be anyway, Hannah? Or has it not been planned yet?"

Hannah looked a bit uncomfortable at Frank's sudden change in subject. In fact, she almost as if she were going to cry again. Joe didn't seem to happy about Frank's sudden interest in Ned either, giving his brother a look that could kill.

"What the hell, Frank?" Joe looked at Frank, waiting for a response. "You're oblivious to everything we're talking about then you bring up Ned! Hasn't Hannah been through enough? And here, I'm the one who's usually insensitive and talks out of my ass, not you! What is wrong with you?"

"No, it's okay, Joe…" Hannah started, grabbing a hold of his arm to stop him.

"What is wrong with _me?_ " Frank yelled back angrily. "What the hell is wrong with you? Do you not have any ideas as to finding Nancy? I'm the one who usually does all the thinking while you do nothing but flirt with the girls or talk about nonsense! Don't you care about anyone? You two just sit here laughing about things that happened in the past and NANCY IS MISSING!"

"Now, Frank, we were just…" Hannah again tried to intercede.

"You think I don't care about Nancy?" Joe yelled, ignoring Hannah who was now trying to stop the brothers from going into an all-out fight. "That's a nasty thing to say to me, Frank and you know it! We've been through a lot with her and I would give _anything_ up to get her back safely. She's like a sister to me so don't you _dare_ tell me that I don't care!"

"Well, I…" Frank stammered, trying to think of a comeback.

'Well, you what?" Joe interrupted, stepping closer to Frank even with Hannah in between them. "You didn't think I cared about her as much as you do? Think again, big brother! You may be a year older and a bit wiser but there are times where you are just pig-headed and this is one of those moments! Again, what is wrong with you? First, you act like you're ready to take on the world to find Nancy, then you turn into some sort of zombie-like creature who can't think straight let alone walk from point A to point B without my help. Right after we get to the hotel, you got an 'epiphany,' which I still have no clue what that is, and you start acting like yourself again. Now you're getting mad at me because I sound like I don't care about what's going on. You're the one who brought up wanting to know when Ned's funeral was and you tell me _I_ don't care? What gives?"

"That's what I would like to know," replied a voice behind them. The brothers turned toward the voice, stunned to see Fenton Hardy standing at the door to the other room, a look of sheer anger etched on his face. Carson Drew silently stood behind him. "We could hear you two screaming at each other all the way to the elevators. What in God's name is going on here?"


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

"Dad, you're early," was all Joe could say, his face as white as a sheet.

"No shit, Sherlock," grumbled Fenton. The look he gave his sons would make even a murderer cower in fear. He slapped the laptop bag into Frank's hands and walked in between the two brothers, gently pushing Hannah aside. "Now, explain."

"He started it," Frank and Joe both cried at the same time pointing to each other. The two started bickering back and forth once more, Fenton rubbing his hand on his temple.

"Enough!" Fenton slapped each of his sons upside the head. "You two are old enough to act like adults so stop squabbling like little children!"

"Yes, sir," mumbled Frank, still looking at Joe in anger. Joe nodded his head in agreement but didn't say anything.

"Now, since neither one of you can be man enough to tell me what's going on, I'm going to ask Hannah. You two better not interrupt her again, either!" Fenton looked to Hannah for her response.

"It was really a misunderstanding, Fenton," Hannah answered, a little nervous. She explained the whole argument from the beginning and ending with Frank bringing up Ned's funeral. "I…I just can't." She burst into tears.

"It's okay, Hannah," Fenton replied, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Carson remained at the door, staring at the floor. Fenton glared at his sons, who both started to look very uncomfortable. He guided Hannah to Carson who left with her to their own room, leaving the angry father and his two sons. "You two need to get a grip on yourselves. Do you have any notion what that woman went through last night? You should because you heard it from her own mouth! I only heard bits and pieces of it from Carson on the way up the elevator and even I wouldn't do what you just did to her! Tact, Frank! I shouldn't be even yelling at you for it because it's usually him!" *points to Joe* "And now I'm hearing him with the voice of reason while my older son practically spits in his face! As Joe said, what's wrong with you?"

"Dad, I…" Frank started but couldn't find the right words.

"Don't 'Dad' me! You don't treat your brother or _anyone_ around you like crap for no reason! Be a man for God's sake!"

"I don't know!" yelled Frank. He plopped down onto the bed, the laptop bag still in his hands. "I honestly don't know what I'm doing. Ever since we were at the Drew's house last night, I haven't been able to think straight without thinking what could be going on with Nancy."

"Finally, the truth!" cried Fenton, his anger dissipating. He calmly put his hand on Frank's shoulder waiting for him to continue.

"I…I don't know what else to do." Frank shrugged his shoulders and looked at the ground. "This really has never happened before. I mean we've had our own missing cases before and have been through a lot over the years but this…this is different."

"Why didn't you say anything?" asked Joe, looking at Frank with concern. "You scared the crap out of me, acting the way you did."

"I have my own way of dealing with issues," Frank said. "You know that from what I told you last night about Kyla."

"Kyla?" Fenton raised his eyebrows. "Who's she?"

"The reason I asked for my laptop, Dad," Frank explained. "I need her to help us triangulate where the phone call came from last night and the only way to get a hold of her is via the internet. She keeps off the grid and doesn't want a phone to bring the police to her doorstep. She has a way of recognizing where people are and if I use a different computer, she may not help because of the distrust she has with others."

"She sounds…lovely," Fenton gulped, a little worried by this development.

"That's what I said," muttered Joe, rolling his eyes. "But he insists there's nothing more than the whole computer geekiness they share."

"I told you that, Joe!" Frank cried, getting angry again. "Look, I need some time to myself so I can get started. I just want to be left alone for a while."

"Oh, okay," replied Fenton. He was still very concerned for Frank's well being but he was glad that Frank wanted to be left alone to work it out. Maybe he needed the time to get his head together and talk with Kyla. Anything is better than seeing his oldest having a breakdown of some kind. Frank rose from the bed, heading for the door.

"I'll let you know what I find when I do," he said, looking back at his father and brother. The two looked like they wanted to say something more but didn't as Frank left the room.

A silence grew for several minutes as the father and son awkwardly stood, not knowing what to say to each other. Carson and Hannah, who watched and listened to the whole conversation, stood at the door to their room, concerned.

"Well, who's hungry?" Joe asked. The others looked at him incredulously as if he grew another head. "What? We gotta eat and I'm starving."

Fenton swiped his hand on the back of Joe's head again with a loud smack. Joe yelped and rubbed his hand over the area.

"Tact, Joe. Learn it."

* * *

James sat in silence, waiting patiently for Dr. Cox to tell him what was going to happen next. He was worried about Nancy and what was happening to her but he understood somewhat of the doctor's reasoning. James still wanted to see her and to make sure that she was okay but he wanted to do that before the whole process began. Since it already started, he didn't have a choice but to go by what Dr. Cox told him. James never expected Nancy to be able to get out of the room and call anyone so he didn't think anything of it when he put that phone in the room next to hers. Dr. Cox was right in regards to her will. She was very strong and the first person she called was Carson. At least Dr. Cox was able to get her back before she could lead them on as to where they were though James didn't think she knew for sure. The time table shifted though and it was only a matter of time before someone figured out his the path to them. These people weren't stupid and James knew it.

"So, James, are you ready for what's coming?" Dr. Cox said in between bites. The pair were sitting in the dining room of the house, a nice spread of food in front of them. James was eating but barely, too worried about Nancy.

"I don't know what you mean. Of course, I'm ready for anything but I'm not sure what's coming."

"Well, we have to be ready for just about anything that the police or anyone could throw at us," Dr. Cox stated. "Things had to change once Nancy got out of her room last night. We also couldn't find anything in the files Maddox took to work with on Carson, which is a shame. I was hoping there was something we could use but the man's a saint."

"Yes, I know," James sniffed, disgusted at the thought of Carson. "He was like that twenty-five years ago too. Irritated the piss out of me because Kate was always running to him for anything and he would do it for her without question."

"I remember the things he did as well. Carson always had too big of a heart to be a bad person which I guess is why he doesn't take on clients whom he knows are guilty." Dr. Cox sneered at the thought, almost like he had a bad taste in his mouth for bringing up bad memories. "Even if we were to release any kind of false information about him, the reporters may persecute him for a while but the police wouldn't arrest him for it because of us. They wouldn't trust the information though Carson's reputation would be destroyed."

"Why don't we do that? People wouldn't trust him anymore."

"No, I think you already did that when you revealed yourself to everyone at the banquet last night," Dr. Cox said, thinking. "I heard it through the grapevine that even the family of the man who was killed last night was treating Carson differently."

"Where'd you hear that from?" James asked, shocked.

"A little blue birdie told me this morning when I called for my update." Dr. Cox laughed at his own joke. He spent the next hour going over his plan to James, who listened intently. When he was finished and the table was cleared, Dr. Cox sat back and observed James as he thought about everything he just heard. "In the end, my dear boy, you are going to be happy just like you wanted to be and Carson will be out of lives forever."

"I like it," James said, excited. "But there's just one thing I'm confused on. What about my men? I thought they would have been here by now and you haven't mentioned them at all since you started talking."

"Ah, yes," Dr. Cox nodded. "Unfortunately, James, they won't be coming. Not now, not ever."

"Wait, what?" James was discouraged at this for he was looking forward to seeing his compatriots for the past few weeks. Dr. Cox had lied again to him. "When I went in to prison for them years ago, they told me they would help if the need ever arose! The need has risen! Plus the fact I can't stand Maddox and Sage!"

"I know that," Dr. Cox said, watching James get angrier by the minute. "They have been dealt with accordingly. Well, at least the ones who didn't cooperate that is. Some of them had families after many years of waiting for you to return. They said they didn't want to endanger their new lives by going back to that life. Most of them were wanted here in the United States so now they're sitting in jail for murdering their families. As for the ones who didn't say 'no' actually couldn't say anything. They were either dead, missing, or rotting in a prison cell somewhere. So, you have to deal with what you have now."

James looked at Dr. Cox in a whole new way that made him slightly sick to his stomach. He knew prison life was not the greatest, especially where he was. It practically made James change his whole attitude on things around him. But when Dr. Cox came to see him to offer him a chance to get out, he jumped at the chance to get away from the hell hole. He agreed to what the doctor offered him in exchange for getting him out. The revelation that his once loyal crew of pirates and miscreants turned him down flat disheartened him and he knew he needed to believe that what Dr. Cox did to them was for the best.

"Okay," James said after a pause. "I guess I'm stuck with the men you hired for now although I'm not happy about it. How long do you think we have?"

"I'd give it a couple of days. I'm hoping for three days but with the technology and resources they have, it could be tomorrow. It doesn't sound like a lot of time but we can get a lot done and plan accordingly. When I call my informant again, I'll make sure he lets us know when the time is right."

"Your informant, who is he?" James asked, hoping to catch the doctor off guard to reveal a name or clue.

"Well, James," Dr. Cox began, sighing. "As I told you before, it is not important as to who he is right at the moment. I'm sure sometime in the near future, he will no longer be my informant but for now, he'll do for our purposes. He doesn't even know he is giving up any information when I call him. Most of the police are keeping their attention on finding Nancy, not finding a mole they don't even know they have. They have been played from the beginning."

Dr. Cox rose from the table and stretched a bit. James followed him out into the foyer of the house where the good doctor gave him a smile that seemed to convince James everything would be okay.

"Now, how bout you go find something for you to do," Dr. Cox said, patting James on the back. "Maybe later I'll let you see her. Okay?"

"I don't really know what to do but okay," James shrugged.

He walked off to another part of the house. Dr. Cox waited until he was out of sight before going back upstairs. He wanted to check on the progress of his plan. He smiled to himself. This was going to be fun and no one will be the wiser.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

Frank found a small café a few miles from the hotel and set up his laptop in a booth in the corner. He plugged in his internet stick because he didn't want to use the café's wifi for fear of other hackers and other safety concerns.

Within a few minutes, Frank was logged into the exclusive chat room where he met Kyla, a female hacker whom he met just a few months ago. Although there was no real relationship between the two, Frank found Kyla to be intriguing to say the least. She was one of those people who had problems just like Frank but didn't have the right people to talk to about the issues, or at least dealt with the issues in different ways. He looked through the list of people in the chat room, her tag name not being one of them so he sent her a personal message. Frank knew she constantly checked her messages throughout the day even if she wasn't in the chat room.

-KYLA. YOU THERE?

Frank set up a private message room and waited for her to arrive. It was only a matter of minutes before her name popped up and a response came back.

-WELL, WELL, WELL. FRANK. HOW YOU BEEN? LONG TIME.

-I'M OKAY BUT I NEED YOUR HELP.

-I'M ALL EARS. WHAT'S GOING ON THAT YOU NEED MY EXPERTISE?

Frank went on to explain what happened from the phone call he received from Carson all the way to his breakdown in front of his father. It took several minutes to get everything out of his system talking to her and he actually felt a bit better once he was done. He then told her needed help locating the position of a blocked number.

-OOO. A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS. AND I THOUGHT WE HAD SOMETHING GOING ON HERE ;)

Frank blushed at the comment but knew he wouldn't be into Kyla very much if he ever met her.

-YOU KNOW YOU'RE MY GIRL, KYLA ;) BUT SHE'S VERY SPECIAL TO ME. CAN YOU HELP?

-WELL THERE'S NOT MUCH I CAN DO. I MAY NOT BE ABLE TO PINPOINT THE EXACT LOCATION, ESPECIALLY IF THEY ARE BOUNCING OFF SOMEONE ELSE'S PHONE LINE. IF THEY'RE INTELLIGENT, THEY PROBABLY ARE DOING JUST THAT. GIVE ME THE CELL PHONE NUMBER THE CALL WENT TO AND THE TIME OF THE CALL. I'LL TAKE CARE OF THE REST AND HACK INTO THE CELL PHONE RECORDS.

Frank sent all the information and more to Kyla, hoping she'd come back quickly with what he needed. Time was of the essence and he expressed that to her. He even sent her his dummy email so she could contact him faster when she was ready. He ended the chat and noticed their exchange took over 2 hours. Frank rubbed his eyes and opened up Google to search for some information and do some digging of his own while he waited. He didn't want to return to the hotel without anything concrete. Plus he didn't want to face his family with the knowledge that he had been a butthead to his brother. His dad was right. Frank wasn't himself and he didn't understand why.

Typing in a few things, his mind started to wander, thinking about the last time he saw Nancy. They were investigating a string of robberies along with Joe and she abruptly went home after her and Frank blew up at each other. Nancy was usually pretty good about people's character which was one of her better attributes. She started getting close to a suspect for the case and, while they were alone together once, he accused her of cheating on Ned. Nancy slapped him across the face and burst into tears, leaving Frank taken aback by her sudden reaction. She soon packed her bags, gave Joe an excuse that she was called home for an emergency and left the brothers to finish the case themselves. Frank was upset at the time especially when it turned out she was right. The man she was getting involved with was innocent and Frank really never had the chance to apologize to her. She wouldn't take his calls for quite some time and when she finally did, they were quick and to the point. He never told anyone about the whole incident including Joe.

When Carson called a few days before, Frank jumped at the chance at seeing Nancy again and being able to talk to her about what happened the year before. Her disappearance put a damper on the whole thing and he felt like he missed his chance yet again. He wanted more than anything to find her just to see her face. Every smile was hers, every laugh within crowds. Frank missed her more than he knew he could, knowing she was in danger.

"More coffee, hon?" asked the waitress, interrupting his train of thought.

"Oh, yes," Frank answered, raising his mug for her. He looked down at his computer screen to see an old picture of Kate Austin, Nancy's mother, a young Carson Drew, and another man whom Frank suspected to be James Matthews. The trio stared at him, smiling and he wondered where James was.

"You seem to be lost there, son," replied the waitress. She was an older woman with her grey hair swept up into a bun. Her name tag read "Camille."

"Yeah," he sighed, rubbing his eyes. "I have a lot on my mind and I don't know where to start."

"Well, maybe I could help," Camille said. She looked around the empty café and sighed. "I have all the time in the world. What's your name?"

"Frank." He held out his hand to shake hers.

"Call me Cami. Nice to meet you, Frank. You're not really from around here, are you?"

"What gave you that idea?" Frank took a sip as Cami sat down across from him at his booth.

"Well, though you look vaguely familiar, I've never really seen you here and I know just about everyone in River Heights."

"I came here to help out a friend but things changed and I never got the chance to see her."

"Ah, kind of like a love lost?" asked Cami, her eyebrows raised in interest.

"Oh, I'm not so sure about that," Frank answered, looking a bit embarrassed about her remark. "Her father called my brother and I for help and when we got here, she was gone."

"Now I remember where I've seen you!" cried Cami, clapping her hands. "Last night, at the banquet! You were with Carson Drew! You must be friends with Nancy then."

"You were there?"

"Oh, hon, just about everyone who's anyone was there last night and my boss invited me since he closed this place early. I felt so bad for Carson. Nancy and Ned too. When those two broke up last year, the whole town mourned it seemed."

"Wait, what?" Frank asked, confused. "I didn't know they were no longer together. From the pictures at the banquet and him being at the house, I thought…"

"Oh, no, hon," Cami said, apologetically. "They stayed friends for a while but their romantic relationship was over since about mid-year last year."

Frank heart skipped a beat. _No wonder she blew up at me like that last year!_ he thought. _Her and Ned had just broken up and I put my foot in my mouth, again!_

"You okay, dear?"

"Um, yes, sorry. Just my mind is blowing up right now."

"Sure it is." Cami gave him a side glance and a secret smile. "How long have you been friends with Nancy?"

"Oh, um, since we were teenagers, I think," Frank stammered out the response. His face was turning red a little and Cami smiled wider. "We never, you know, together, like that, though."

"Uh huh. Well, to each his own, right? Nancy's a good girl too." Cami kept watching Frank's face as he thought it over. "Not like that James fellow, anyway."

"Do you know a lot about him?" Frank said suddenly, trying to change the subject off of Nancy and him.

"Well, everyone does. There was a love triangle between James, Carson, and Kate way back when. She was with James for a time but eventually moved on to Carson, especially after she found out she was pregnant." Frank's mind exploded with thoughts about what Carson had told him and Joe when they arrived. It sure wasn't what Cami just said! Carson didn't tell them everything and Frank wondered as to why he still kept certain things from people. "James never knew the other two were together. He never even suspected it but I guess it's why he returned after all these years."

"How do you know all this, Cami?" Frank asked, looking at her with a little bit of skepticism. No one could know that much and not tell the whole world about it.

"Well, hon, a lot of people come in and out of this place. They come here to gossip or spill their secrets to each other and sometimes they include me, sometimes they don't. Others come here for solitude, like yourself, and to get away from those around them. Seems to help clear their minds when they need it the most." Cami sighed before continuing. "I have been here for over thirty years and I have heard everything you could possibly imagine, including one such conversation I heard twenty-five years ago between two lovers who wanted so desperately to be together if not for a third party in the mix."

Frank listened intently to everything Cami told him. He thought it strange that Carson would still keep secrets from those closest to him even when James returned to the area without any knowing he was still alive. No wonder the town was mad at him!

"There is one thing I know though," Cami said, holding her finger up. "Carson Drew is a good man. If he kept all this from those closest to him all these years, he had good reason to. He wanted to protect his family and that's understandable. Who wouldn't? None of these people who are turning their backs on him don't know the meaning of the word integrity and none of them are saints either. It's not like the whole thing with Cosgrove and that fiasco. At least Carson kept his principles with that."

"Who's Cosgrove?" Frank asked, seemingly interested in this little tidbit of information.

"Oh, he was a crazy nut job who caused some damage within River Heights about twenty years ago. A lot of the people around here are still in therapy over that one." Cami was about to go on when the bell rang announcing the arrival of customers at the front door. "They're singing my song." She rose from the booth and smiled down at Frank. "Don't worry about what's going on. Take everything in stride and if you trust the right people, they'll come through for you in the end. Lunch is on me today and make sure that when you find your girl, come back and visit me. I'd like to see Nancy again."

Cami started to walk away saying hello to the new customers but abruptly turned back to Frank. "Oh, and if you're really interested in some history, there are some gorgeous houses outside town. Lots of history and beauty in them." She gave him a wink, leaving him to ponder her weird addition to their conversation.

Frank sat there thinking. Cami was right. Someone or something will come through in the end. He knew it and he needed to trust those around him especially his own family. Sure enough, as he was walking back to Hannah's SUV, Frank heard his phone chirp with a new email message. Kyla responded back quickly with only three words: I GOT IT!

* * *

"When do you think he'll come back, Dad?" asked Joe in between bites of his cheeseburger.

"Give him time, Joe," Fenton answered. "And cover your mouth when you have food in it. I'm trying to eat myself and I don't like seeing chewed up cow when you're talking to me."

Hannah smiled at hearing Joe and Fenton. They were all sitting at a table in the hotel's restaurant, eating a late lunch. The father and son had discussed Frank the majority of the time while Carson and Hannah sat silently, listening. Carson kept looking around at the other patrons who were eyeing him and his party, whispering to each other and pointing nonchalantly. He knew the town was mad at him about James but the stares were getting slightly unnerving. As he sat there, staring down at his uneaten lunch, Carson just wished he could cover his head and disappear especially when he saw some of them give him nasty looks.

"I need to leave," Carson said abruptly, rising from his chair. "Excuse me."

"Okay." Hannah watched him walk quickly out of the room. She noticed the murmurs rise as other guests watched him rush from the restaurant. "Will you please excuse me?" she said to the Hardys and quickly followed Carson. Fenton and Joe were left dumbstruck by Carson and Hannah's sudden departure.

"That poor man," said a voice from the next table. Joe kept his ear to that side of the table to hear the conversation. "What he's been through the past day. Such a shame."

"He brought it upon himself, Eleanor," said another woman at the table. None of them were extremely keen on keeping their voices down even though Fenton and Joe were still sitting next to the ladies. "Keeping such a secret from the town like that, such scandal! It's no wonder it happened at all! Those poor men found at his house, they're the ones you should feel sorry for. I heard Janice Nickerson won't even let him come to her son's funeral. She blames him for her son! And whatever happened to Nancy? She hasn't been seen in days."

"Maybe she actually killed him instead and ran off," said a third lady.

"That is not true!" cried Joe. The entire restaurant stopped talking to look over at him as he stood glaring over the three women. Fenton tried to stop his son causing a scene but it was too late. "Nancy would never hurt Ned! She's not the type and she loved him anyways!" His face grew red as the ladies stared at him.

"Well, you don't know her very well then, you rude young man," replied the second lady. "It's no town secret that they were together for years but it's also no secret they broke up last year. It was a top headline for the gossip column for weeks!"

"I heard it was a harsh breakup," replied the third lady, matter-of-factly. "You should mind your own business and not eavesdrop on people's conversations."

"Oh, stop you two!" cried the woman named Eleanor. "Don't you see you're upsetting this young man even more? Now, young man, it is very rude to listen in on other people but I don't blame you for saying something in this instance. My two friends here don't seem to have very good manners at the moment."

"Eleanor!"

"I am so sorry for the intrusion, ladies," replied Fenton, finally able to get Joe under control. He pushed his son aside as he continued. "My son here is very emotional at the thought of his friend's disappearance." *Eleanor smirked at her friends* "I understand that you have your own qualms about Carson Drew but I know he is hurting and he feels guilty for deceiving everyone. I ask though, please be a little more considerate to those around you before opening your traps you call mouths, with exception to you Miss Eleanor. Now, if you would excuse us, my son and I need to go be with our friend during this hard time. You ladies have a lovely day."

Fenton led Joe out of the restaurant leaving Eleanor to scold at her two friends, telling them they deserved it for being a bunch of ninnies. He stopped at the door and paid for all of their lunches even though most of the food was never eaten. The other patrons returned to their lunches as if nothing ever happened but it soon became a topic of conversation as others entered the restaurant.

"Dad, why didn't you let me tell them off?" Joe asked, following his father to the elevators.

"Because killing them with kindness was better than screaming at them and causing a scene," Fenton answered, pushing the 'up' button. "Besides, we have to stay here and I really don't want to be unwelcome in the only restaurant this hotel has to offer."

"But, Dad," Joe cried. "We already are unwelcome by the looks of the other guests. Well, at least Carson is but I don't like the way they treated him. And you heard what that woman said about Ned's mother. Did she really say that to him?"

"Unfortunately, yes, Joe," Fenton said sadly. "Carson told me before we got upstairs earlier. He was very upset about it especially since Ned was such a huge part of their lives. Apparently, he brought Nancy home a few nights ago after she got a little tipsy at a bar. Even though Carson slightly rude to him while he was at the house, he still appreciated what Ned did for her."

"Nancy was drunk? Seriously?"

"Yes, and I don't want you to bring it up either. She got upset with Carson when he told her a few days ago about James and that was the last time he saw her." Fenton waited at their door for Joe to dig for his key to the room. "Don't mention any of what happened downstairs to Carson or Hannah, especially what that nasty woman said about Nancy. They would be devastated to know people are talking about her like that."

"Okay, Dad." Joe closed the door tightly. The room was still void of Frank and the door to the other room was closed. "What are we going to do now?"

"Well, Joe, I think we just have to wait here for Frank to return." Joe huffed onto the freshly made bed, flopping back onto the pillows.

"I'm already bored," Joe sighed.

"Read a book, Joe," his father muttered, pulling out his own book. He immersed himself in his book but still saw Joe reach for the TV remote. "Don't even think about it."


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's note:**

 **Thank you so much for the awesome input! You have no idea how much I appreciate it! I'm glad you all are enjoying the story! Don't be surprised if you see the next chapter later this evening or tomorrow since I wrote both of them back to back! Keep on reviewing! Thanks!**

Chapter Fourteen

-WHAT DO YOU HAVE FOR ME KYLA? Frank asked after logging into the chat room. He sat in Hannah's SUV, turning on the overhead light so he could see. His fingers impatiently drummed the keyboard waiting for her response.

-I FOUND SOME INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT THAT PHONE NUMBER YOU WERE LOOKING FOR. SEEMS THEY ARE BOUNCING OFF SOMEONE ELSES PHONE LINE. I WENT THROUGH THE PHONE LOG FOR THAT NUMBER AFTER HACKING INTO THE PHONE COMPANY AND SUBTRACTED ALL THE NUMBERS USED BEFORE A FEW DAYS AGO. THATS WHEN THE PHONE NUMBER WAS DUPLICATED. I PINPOINTED ONE NUMBER IN PARTICULAR THAT WAS VERY RARELY CALLED BEFORE BUT ALL OF A SUDDEN IT WAS CALLED EVERY DAY AT LEAST ONCE.

-WHAT ABOUT THE CELL PHONE NUMBER I GAVE YOU? ANY LUCK THERE? Frank was getting excited at hearing everything Kyla found. Sounded like it had only been going on for a few days which meant where they were was temporary.

-THAT ONE WAS FREQUENTLY CALLED EVEN BEFORE THE DUPLICATION. ITS ALSO UNDER THE SAME NAME AS THE ORIGINAL PHONE NUMBER. ITS THEIR HOUSE PHONE. SOMEONE NAMED CARSON DREW.

Frank looked at the screen, reread it and swore out loud. He couldn't believe that James was actually using Carson's own house phone number to call out. If Carson looked at his phone records, he wouldn't have been the wiser because it would have looked normal. He asked her what the other phone number was but when she responded he didn't know it off hand.

-STRANGELY NO ON CAN CALL INTO THAT EXTRA PHONE LINE. ONLY CALL OUT AND IF SOMEONE AT THE HOME PHONE MADE OR ACCEPTED A PHONE CALL AT THE SAME TIME IT WOULD JUST SOUND LIKE INTERFERENCE OR MAYBE EVEN CRACKLING ON THE LINE. FROM THE LOOK OF THE PHONE RECORDS IT DIDNT HAPPEN OFTEN. EVERY TIME I LOOKED AT THE MAP TO LOCATE WHERE IT CAME FROM IT WOULD TELL ME IT CAME FROM A RESIDENTIAL AREA. DONT THINK THATS WHAT YOURE LOOKING FOR IS IT?

So we're back to square one with this. Frank sat thinking of where to go from there then thought of something Cami just told him about the houses nearby. He started typing, asking Kyla to look at the houses on the outskirts of River Heights to see if any of them were recently rented or bought with in the past few months. It took her a while but she came back with her response.

-4309 WINTER COURT. LOOKS TO BE RIGHT OUTSIDE TOWN ACCORDING TO THE MAP. IT WAS BOUGHT BY SOMEONE NAMED JOSH MARTIN AND IT WAS IN CASH. WHO DOES THAT?

-THAT MUST BE IT! THANKS KYLA. IF I COULD KISS YOU I WOULD. REMIND ME TO SEND YOU A VIRTUAL BOUQUET THE NEXT TIME I TALK TO YOU.

\- ANYTIME HONEY. A VIRTUAL BOUQUET WOULD BE FINE. I DON'T THINK MY OTHER HALF WOULD LIKE THAT. LOL. LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED ANY MORE HELP. THAT WAS FUN!

Frank signed off once Kyla was gone. He couldn't believe that Cami gave him a clue and he didn't even realize it. He started the engine and shifted it into gear. As he left, another car passed him and parked in the space he just vacated. He didn't notice the driver pull out a cell phone and start dialing, never taking his eyes off Frank's car.

* * *

A half an hour later, Frank drove by a large metal gate and he knew he was in the right place. He didn't slow down since he saw two guards watching him from the shack next to the gate. He caught a quick glimpse at the house in the distance, its lights illuminating the night sky. Rounding a corner, Frank pulled alongside the road and turned off the headlights. He could see the town lit up in the distance and wondered how long it would take for the police to get here as he dialed Chief McGinnis' direct line at the precinct.

"McGinnis," came the chief's voice over the line.

"Chief, it's Frank Hardy," he said excitedly. "I think I may have found them!"

"What!?"

Frank told him where he was and the street address to the house. He also told the chief about the guards he saw at the gate. Frank could hear the chief scribbling fiercely onto something.

"Stay put," Chief McGinnis ordered. "I don't want anyone else hurt before we get there. Did the guards see you?"

"Yes but I just drove by once," Frank said. "I'm parked around the corner from the gate so they shouldn't be able to see me here."

"You might want to turn around and go back to town to wait for us, Frank," McGinnis said. "That road is a dead end and if you don't go back the way you came, they'll know something's up. We'll be there as soon as we can."

"Yes, sir," Frank said. "I'll move when I get off the phone with you. See you soon."

Frank ended the call but realized he needed to call his dad to let him know where he was before he drove back to town. Just before hitting the send button to dial, he heard a hard tap at his window. Frank looked over to see one of the men from the guard shack standing there, smiling and waving to him. He rolled down the window just enough to be able to talk to the man.

"Having car trouble, sir?" he asked Frank, his smile never wavering.

"Oh, no problem with the car," laughed Frank. "I'm from out of town and I seem to be lost. Must have taken a wrong turn somewhere."

"Well, I can help you get to where you need to be. Where you headed?"

"Rivermont Hotel," Frank lied.

"You really must have taken a wrong turn then! That's on the other side of town. Just wait right here and I'll ask for directions from my partner." The man turned around as Frank nervously fiddled with the phone still in his hands. He was tempted to call his dad just in case something happened. He watched the man radio his partner but couldn't hear the conversation between them. Frank was looking at his phone when he heard the tell-tale tapping at his window. He turned to see the man no longer smiling and a gun pointed at Frank.

"Please step out of the car, Mr. Hardy. Someone would like a word with you."

* * *

"Dad, I'm hungry. When are we going to eat?"

"Is that all you think about, Joe?" asked Fenton from the driver's seat of his rental car. Joe sat in the backseat behind Carson who decided to come with them when the father and son wanted to go search for Frank. It had been hours since Frank left the hotel and they were starting to get a little worried as to where he was. Hannah remained back at the hotel to rest. "There's a café we haven't tried yet so we'll get food there. Will that suffice?"

"Yes! I need some sustenance!"

"I'll stay in the car if you don't mind," Carson stated. He laughed at Joe as the younger man rushed out of the car before Fenton even put it into park. "He's very determined isn't he?"

"You have no idea," Fenton muttered. "Sometimes I wonder if he's even related to me. Oh, sorry. Bad joke."

"No, I understand what you're trying to say," Carson said, cheerfully. "Be wary of Cami. She'll talk your ear off."

"Ok," laughed Fenton. He left the keys in the ignition and followed Joe who was waiting for him impatiently at the door to the café.

Even though his stomach was grumbling for food, Joe was still worried about where Frank got to. It wasn't like him to just not call. When he entered the café, Joe's senses were overstimulated with the aroma of food. Fenton followed him, noticing the café was virtually empty save for the older waitress wiping down the counter.

"Hey there!" she said cheerfully. Fenton noticed her name tag read 'Camille' and he thought she must be who Carson warned them about, though she seemed nice. "What can I do you two for?"

"I need some food," Joe answered quickly, sounding famished. He hadn't eaten since their small, unfinished lunch hours before. "Whatcha got?"

"Well, you're sweet," Camille replied, squeezing his cheek. "I like that in a man. Well, I can get you the special if you like. Meatloaf and mashed potatoes with a side salad, sound yummy?"

"No, thank you," Fenton responded before Joe could say yes to the larger meal. "We need something a little more on-the-go than that. Three cheeseburgers and fries please with three cokes."

"Sure! Be right back!" Camille put the order in for the cook and returned to the counter with the three drinks for them. "Have I seen you two before?"

"No, I don't think so," said Fenton. "We're here visiting friends."

"Oh! I know you!" She pointed to Joe. "I saw you last night at the banquet. You looked so handsome! And you look familiar too!"

"I don't know how," Fenton answered, a little annoyed.

"That's right!" Camille said, ignoring Fenton's tone. "You look just like that young man who was in here earlier today!"

"Wait, you saw my brother?" asked Joe, perking up immediately. So this wasn't a complete failure in coming here.

"If your brother's name is Frank, then yes," she said excitedly. "Good kid but had a lot on his mind. Worked on his computer most of the time then seemed to be lost in his own thoughts."

"That sounds like Frank," answered Joe, smiling at his dad, whose face did not quite register relief from hearing the news.

"What do you mean he was here earlier?" Fenton said a little angry. "He hasn't returned yet and we're worried sick! Do you know where he went?"

"Well, yeah," Camille said, her smile faltering a bit. "He left but stayed in his car for a while. Looked like he was doing something on the computer again then took off, going out of town towards the larger houses."

"When exactly did he leave?" Fenton asked, softening his tone a bit.

"Oh, he left about an hour and a half to two hours ago," Camille tried to recollect. "I don't know for sure because two people came in right after he drove off. My attention moved to them. They weren't really ones you'd want to ignore."

"Why do you say that?" Joe asked.

"Well, the guy was big, had a nasty bruise on his nose as if someone broke it recently. The girl looked mad at the world with a nice shiner on her eye."

"That sounds like the ones Hannah described," replied a voice from the door. The Hardys turned to see Carson standing at the door, the bell completely ignored by them when it rang off. "I got tired of waiting but I see why. Cami, how are you?"

"I'm doing well, thank you, Carson," Cami smiled. She walked around the counter to Carson and gave him a hug, whispering in his ear. He nodded and smiled at her, appreciatively.

"Why didn't you tell the Chief about this?" Carson asked her.

"He's been acting rather strange lately ever since he returned from his fishing trip last month," Cami said darkly. "I was afraid it would be ignored or he wouldn't believe me. The man who was here right after Frank left, he was on the phone talking as he came in. Not sure about what but it was almost as if he were warning someone about a car coming their way. You know not many people go out of town this way since it's virtually a dead end."

"Right." Carson looked to the Hardys with concern. "We'd better go find Frank. I have a feeling he may need some help."

"I think they're going to beat you to it, Carson," Cami replied, pointing outside. Squad car after squad car raced past the café on their way out of town, lights and sirens blaring in the night. She rushed to the back and returned with a bag of their food, handing it to Joe.

"Good to see you again, Cami," Carson replied, giving her a quick peck on the cheek.

"You too, Carson! Keep your chin up, hon!" She turned to Joe as he stuffed a few fries into his mouth on the way out. "Hey, mind your brother. He feels bad about what happened between you two. Now, go!"

Joe looked at her with new found respect and raced outside to his father's rental. More police cars raced and as the last one went by, Fenton backed the car out of the parking space. He followed the police to the outlying homes of River Heights and hoped they made it in time.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Frank was forced to drive his car up to the house, parking it in front. The guard with him took him inside and to a large library at the back of the house. He looked around the room, books of all shapes and sizes lining the walls and a fire blazing in the fireplace. A few moments after being led into the room, James walked in with another man, Frank's eyes growing wide when he saw the larger man's broken nose.

"Good evening, Mr. Hardy or can I call you Frank?" James said pleasantly. He took the seat across from Frank and smiled at him. When Frank didn't say anything he laughed. "Now now. Don't be rude. I know you're looking for your friend but I assure you, she's perfectly fine."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Frank lied, staring down James.

"Tsk tsk, Frank," James waggled his finger. "Don't lie. I know who you are and why you're here. The question is how did you figure it out?"

"A lot of guess work," Frank spat. "How do you know who I am anyway?"

"A lot of guess work," James mimicked.

"Where's Nancy?"

"Now, there's the truth! She's around and as I told you, she's fine." James noticed Frank looking at the clock and laughed again. "They're not coming."

"Excuse me?"

"The police. They're not coming." James seemed amused by Frank's shocked look. "Well, at least not right away anyway. Are you in love with my daughter?"

"Who's your daughter because I don't seem to know her," Frank shrugged his shoulders. He was trying to keep his anger at bay over the ridiculousness of their transfer of words.

"Oh, you know who." James winked at him. This was fun to him, watching Frank squirm in his chair, trying to keep from getting angry. "Well, you seem like a good kid but are you good enough for her?"

Frank was getting more and more confused as to why James was asking him these questions. It seemed as if James was toying with his emotions and laughing about it at the same time. There was little to keep Frank from jumping out of his chair and strangling James, except maybe the guard standing next to him or the ugly man with the broken nose nearby. An older man came into the room, eyeing Frank as he walked up to James and whispered in his ear. Frank stared at the man and felt that he was the one pulling James' strings. There was something about him that was unnerving to Frank.

"I'm sorry, Frank, but we have to cut our little tête-à-tête short. You understand? Can't keep the party from starting, now can we?"

Frank saw stars as something hit him on the head from behind. He hit the floor hard, slightly dazed and watched as James and the mystery man hurried out of the room. His last thoughts were of who the other man was and who betrayed his name to James before another blow was given to him and all went black.

* * *

Fenton, Carson, and Joe arrived at an open gate, following the police cars up the driveway. Joe thought it a bit strange that the gate was left open as if welcoming the police or whoever. As they pulled up to the house, he saw Hannah's SUV sitting in front of the door, empty. It meant that Frank was now in the house as well, something that they dreaded all the way there. Officers were gathered out front with Chief McGinnis, who was yelling orders to them and pointing the way he wanted them to go.

"Carson!" yelled McGinnis as the man got out of the car. "I want you to stay here and out of danger. That's an order!"

"You stay here too, Joe," Fenton looked to his son.

"But, Dad!" Joe protested. He shut his mouth and said no more once he saw the look on his father's face.

"I don't need both my sons in danger," Fenton said, grasping Joe's arm in affection. "When everything is over, I'll find you."

Joe watched Fenton rush over to McGinnis and then followed him towards the front of the house. An officer stayed behind with him and Carson and suddenly Joe felt vulnerable. He could hear more sirens in the distance coming toward the house as he waited for word about his brother. As they entered the foyer of the house, there was no one around and it looked as if they left in a hurry. Chairs were overturned and papers strewn about. Fenton was worried that were too late to find either Frank or Nancy.

"Check upstairs. Every room, every closet," McGinnis told the officers with them. They nodded and headed upstairs leaving Fenton and McGinnis to check downstairs. "Radio if you find anything."

" _Chief_?" the radio crackled.

"Go ahead," he answered.

" _You might want to come see this."_

"Where?"

" _Kitchen, sir."_

"On our way."

McGinnis led the way to the where he thought the kitchen was located, soon finding it at the back of the house. When McGinnis opened the door, they were shocked to find numerous men and women lying on the floor. Some were rubbing their heads in confusion while others were still out cold. The officers who found them bent over the ones who were awake, trying to get something from the people.

"What happened?" McGinnis asked, confused himself. He recognized none of the people in room except for maybe a few whose missing person reports he handled personally.

"Sir, I'm not sure myself," replied an officer, notebook in hand. "Not one person can tell us what happened. They're all confused."

"Get the paramedics in here," McGinnis said. "We'll check out the rest of the house."

The officer nodded and walked away to attend another person. Fenton wondered who or what did this and if it was something in the air that may harm more people. He followed McGinnis to a door right outside the kitchen but it was locked. The Chief pounded on the door to see if anyone answered but nothing was heard. As McGinnis turned away to go to another door, Fenton started ramming his shoulder into the door to try to open it.

"What are you doing?" McGinnis cried.

"Begging your pardon, Chief, but in my own experience a locked door always meant someone was in the room," Fenton said in between ramming the door. "If that's the case, its either Frank or Nancy behind the door. Do you want to walk away before finding out?"

"You're right, Fenton," McGinnis agreed. He watched as Fenton finally was able to get the door open, revealing a dark room. Fenton flicked on the light and gasped as he saw Frank lying on the floor, out cold.

"Oh, shit! We need a paramedic in here, NOW!" cried Chief McGinnis. Fenton rushed to his son and flipped him over. Blood was caked onto Frank's face from a blow to the head.

"Please be okay," Fenton said quietly, checking Frank over. He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw his son's chest rise and fall. "Thank God."

"Move aside, sir," ordered the EMT who came up behind Fenton. They started working on Frank with Fenton sitting in the chair watching them.

" _Chief?"_ the radio crackled again.

"Yeah?"

" _We found her, sir. She's asking for her father. Is that okay, sir?"_

"If the house is completely clear, go ahead."

" _Yes, Chief."_

The EMT was shining a flashlight in Frank's eyes when his hand brushed it away. He groaned lightly and started moving his arms gingerly.

"What…what happened?" he said.

"Don't move, Frank," Fenton assured him. He moved to the floor to be closer to Frank even though the EMT was still cleaning up Frank's head. "Everything is going to be fine."

"He's got a nasty bump on his head, Mr. Hardy," the EMT said, taking a bandage out of his pack. "He may have a concussion too. Do you know where you are, Frank?"

"All I remember is books," Frank stated, rubbing his eyes.

"Well, you're partially right. Can you tell me what happened?"

"Dad! Where's Nancy?" Frank abruptly asked, his eyes popping open. "Is she okay?"

"She's fine. Don't worry, Frank." Fenton tried to push Frank down as he tried to raise himself. "Worry about yourself, son."

"She's here?" Frank seemed confused though Fenton thought it had something to do with the blow to the head. "But why was she left behind?"

"Frank!" cried Joe at the door. He rushed to his brother and hugged him as best he could, ignoring the EMT. "Don't ever do that again!"

"Joe! You were supposed to stay Carson!" Fenton yelled. He saw Frank wince at the loud noise and lowered his voice. "What are you doing here?"

"He went up to see Nancy," Joe assured Fenton. "He was with an officer so he's fine."

"See Frank?" Fenton said looking to his older son. "Nothing to worry about. She's fine and so will you for once you calm down."

"But, Dad, something is NOT RIGHT," Frank cried, grasping the lapels on Fenton's jacket. "I heard them talking before I was hit. There's something going on! Why would they leave her behind after everything they did to take her? They were expecting the police! They knew! How?"

"Frank, I'm not sure," Fenton said calmly, taking a hold of Frank's hands and lowering them. "Let the police investigate. They will find out why. You just calm yourself down, like I said before!"

"No, Dad!" Frank rose slowly from the floor, with the help of the EMT and chair. He started walking to the door with Joe close behind. "My instincts were right every time since we got here and this is not the time to disregard them! Where are they, Joe?"

"Upstairs somewhere," Joe said, wondering why Frank was getting upset. "I'm not sure where but the officer at the base of stairs should. What's going on, Frank?"

"Hopefully, nothing," Frank said, rushing as quickly as possible from the room and down the hall. He just hoped his instincts were wrong this time.

* * *

The officer found Nancy sitting in a chair next to a roaring fire. She stared at the flames, a single tear rolling down her cheek. She was dressed in her gown, with a blanket draped over her legs.

"Miss Drew?" he asked to get her attention. She looked over at him and he took a step back. Her face was haggard as if she hadn't slept or eaten in days. "Are…are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she whispered. Nancy looked as if she were having a hard time dealing with something. "I want to see my father, please."

"Yes, of course." The officer excused himself to contact the Chief and get permission to bring Carson in. A few moments later, Carson rushed into the room to see his daughter waiting for him, still sitting in the chair.

"Nancy?" he asked, walking over to her. He immediately became angry at the sight of her face, her usual demeanor nonexistent. Carson wrapped his arms around her and helped her rise from the chair, holding her close. The police officer in the room gave them a little bit of privacy, closing the door behind him. "I'm so glad you're okay, honey!"

Nancy sobbed into his shoulder as he rubbed her back in comfort. Carson shed a few tears himself, happy that the ordeal was finally over. She looked up into his face, tears rolling down her cheeks. It seemed to Carson that she didn't know what to say.

"I'm sorry, Daddy," she whispered.

"For what, sweetheart?" He looked at her with concern but soon felt something sharp go into his side and pulled out quickly. It happened more time, with him grasping at her, his thoughts running rampant. Carson looked closely at Nancy's face and saw she was lost in her own mind, grappling with trying to remain herself. In that one moment, Carson realized his mistake and the ones made in the past. "No."

Carson went to his knees, his hands moving to where the wounds were. He heard a thunk as the knife Nancy was holding hit the floor, blood splattering. She slowly shuffled to the fireplace and pressed a button, opening a secret door. Carson's eyes widened as he saw who was standing there grinning but it wasn't James. It was the one person Carson forgot held a grudge against him for twenty years.

Carson heard shouting coming from the hallway and before he could say or do anything more, Frank barged into the room with Joe close behind. The brothers stood in shock at seeing Nancy covered in blood and Carson kneeling. Frank looked to Nancy whose eyes widened with realization. She looked down at her father and then to the man next to her.

"What have I done?" she whimpered. Nancy looked at her hands and started screaming. "Frank? Joe? What…What's going on?"

Frank took a step forward, wanting so much to run to her and comfort her. Before he could move any closer, the older man grabbed a hold of her wrist and pulled her through the secret door. Frank rushed over to the fireplace, trying to locate the button she pushed, soon hearing the tell-tale click of a lock going in to place. He slapped the mantle in anger and yelled at the top of his lungs.

Joe rushed over to Carson, taking over to cover the man's wounds and slowly lowering him to the ground. He could tell that Carson was in pain from both the wounds and that it was Nancy who did it. Carson was trying to tell him something but Joe just shushed him to calm him down. The paramedics rushed into the room carrying their bag and immediately started working on Carson. Frank walked over to him, kneeling as Carson beckoned him. He said one word before he passed out: Cosgrove.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

"What the hell did you make me do?" screamed Nancy, struggling against Dr. Cox as he pulled her down the corridor. She was barely able to keep up with him, still feeling weak from the drugs he gave her before and kept stumbling in her bare feet.

"Nothing you wouldn't have done eventually, child," Dr. Cox said back. The passage came to an end with a ladder going up, an open hatch above them. Nancy could see James' head looking down at them through the hatch, a cold breeze coming down causing Nancy to shiver in her gown. "Up!"

Nancy stopped and defiantly stood her ground though she swayed a little bit. Dr. Cox made an angry grunt and pushed her into the ladder to force her up. Nancy blinked a few times, dazed when she hit the ladder and looked at him again, not moving. She heard James protest from up above.

"Up!" cried Dr. Cox, pushing her again. "You can do this the easy way or the hard way, whichever you would like to do but get your ass up that ladder!"

Nancy glared at him but grabbed a hold of the rungs and slowly climbed up. Just as she was about to reach near the top, she felt a hand grab a hold of her wrist and pull her up the remainder of the way. She fell into James' arms but quickly pushed him away. The wind blew around her and grew worse as a helicopter, sitting on a hidden pad on the roof, started up. She looked around her trying to find a way back downstairs but only found Dr. Cox's men closing in on her.

"Nancy, you need to come with us," James urged, his hand outstretched to her, beckoning. "I'm not going to let them hurt you again!"

"No!" Nancy cried above the wind. She shivered again in the wind, wrapping her arms around her body. She continued stepping backward away from everyone but noticed a door off to her right. Trying hard not make it obvious, Nancy slowly inched her way towards the door. "I'm not going back with you! You are not going to make me do anything more!"

"You don't have a choice!" yelled Dr. Cox. "We are not leaving without you!"

"No! Get back here!" James said, noticing that she was inching to the door.

"Get on the helicopter, James!" cried Dr. Cox. "We'll get her! Just go!"

Just as she was able to reach the door though, it opened revealing Maddox, who had rushed up the stairs. He smiled at her, grabbing her wrist and pulling her toward the helicopter.

"We have to go now!" he yelled. "The cops found the stairwell! They're on their way up!"

"Let me go!" screamed Nancy, trying to pull away from the much stronger man. Maddox only squeezed her wrist harder causing her to cry out in pain. She stuck her feet into the roof only scream out when her feet started bleeding. Just as before with Dr. Cox, Nancy was unable to pull away or even fight back.

"Come on, bitch!" yelled Maddox, yanking her hard almost pulling her arm out of the socket.

"Don't treat her like that!" James cried. He tried to pull her away from Maddox but the larger man moved her away from him, grinning. "She's not to be harmed!"

"You're not my boss, James!" Maddox stared him door, Nancy cringing and wincing beside him. "Maybe when we get to the other house, I'll do a little more to her. See if you can stop me then!"

Maddox threw Nancy up on the helicopter with Dr. Cox and Sage already on board. Dr. Cox already sent the rest of the men in vans earlier in the evening. A few police officers came through the roof door and Maddox opened fire on them. Nancy cowered in the helicopter as the officers returned fire and Maddox entered the helicopter. When the firing ceased, she looked up to see what made them stop. She saw Frank and Joe rushing past the officers and Chief McGinnis, who had stopped the officers from shooting.

"Nancy!" screamed Frank, ahead of Joe and almost to the helicopter.

"Frank! Joe!" she called back, scrambling out of the helicopter before anyone could stop her. She was on the ledge as it lifted off slowly, her fingers just touching his before she was pulled back inside by Maddox. As the door slammed shut, she could still hear Frank calling her name over the wind. The helicopter flew off, the house and River Heights becoming a distant bright speck on the dark landscape.

* * *

The helicopter was in the distance when Frank finally stopped yelling for Nancy. Joe came up behind him, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder in comfort.

"Don't worry, Frank," Joe said above the wind. "We'll get her back."

"Do we have any idea where they were headed?" McGinnis replied to the officers. Frank whirled around, his face red with anger. Before anyone could stop him, Frank stormed over and punched the older man in the face, slamming the Chief to the ground. The officers in the vicinity rushed over to Frank, holding him down.

"Where were you?" Frank screamed at McGinnis still on the ground. "I called you hours ago!"

"I don't know what you are talking about, Frank," McGinnis said, rubbing his jaw. Two officers helped him up as another one put Frank in handcuffs. "We got here as soon as we could."

"What are you doing?" cried Fenton, rushing up to stop the officer from handcuffing Frank.

"Stay out of this, Dad," snapped Frank. He turned his attention back to McGinnis. "No, you didn't! They knew I was here, which could have come from the guards at the gate but they knew who I was! How is that? _You_ were the only one I called! I didn't even get the chance to call Dad before they knocked on my window!"

"You are on dangerous ground, Hardy!" yelled McGinnis. "Maybe that bump on the head screwed with your timeline but you just called me right before we left the precinct! Okay? Now, I'm getting cold! We'll talk inside!"

Before Frank could object, McGinnis stormed off to the lone door to the attic. The officer holding Frank pushed him down the stairs while Fenton and Joe followed, still protesting. When they were in the attic of the house, Joe finally said something before they could go any further.

"That doesn't make any sense."

"What do you mean, Joe?" asked Fenton. The officers in the room including McGinnis stopped and looked at the younger Hardy.

"Well, think about it for one sec," Joe continued. "Frank left that café not minutes before us as the Chief is stating, but _hours_. That waitress even told us that, but she said something else too. Do you remember?"

"Yes, I do," Fenton said. He turned around to face Chief McGinnis. "She said that you had been acting strange lately. Cami had information that you could have used but she decided not to tell you anything. She felt nothing would be done about it. Good thinking, Joe. There may be hope for you yet."

"Thanks, Dad," Joe smiled, then thought about what he said.

"I think I remember her saying something, too," Frank said. "She said there was 'history and beauty' in these old houses. She wasn't talking about the houses themselves but what could be _found_ in the houses. Cami was talking about James and Nancy. She knew where they were the whole time and she was afraid to tell you!"

"That's preposterous!" cried McGinnis, irritated. "I think I would know if I was giving the bad guys information."

"Would you really?" said Frank. "Who is this Cosgrove anyway?"

McGinnis looked at Frank as if he had seen a ghost, his face white. The officers in the room turned to look at Frank in shock, some of them even whispering to one another. Fenton and Joe looked around in confusion at the officers' reactions.

"What did you just say?" McGinnis asked, inching toward Frank.

"Cosgrove. Did I say something wrong?"

"Shit!" McGinnis looked around at everyone around him and then back to Frank. He sighed. "Let him go."

"But, Chief," the officer holding Frank pleaded. "He assaulted you."

"And he had good reason to," McGinnis said, looking at Frank's stunned face. "Now let him go!"

The officer grumbled as he took the handcuffs off of Frank. Fenton gave his son a pat on the back as Frank rubbed his wrists where the cuffs dug in. The Hardys all stared at McGinnis waiting for an explanation but the Chief began yelling orders to those around him. The room cleared out fast with only Chief McGinnis and the Hardys remaining.

"What I am about to tell you is not known by very many of the newer generations so please, keep it to yourselves unless necessary," McGinnis warned them. He sat down on a chest and rubbed his forehead, thinking of what to say next. "Twenty or so years ago, a psychiatrist named Leonard Cosgrove began his practice here in River Heights. People would go to him not just for advice but also for help with their worst habits. See, he was the foremost expert in driving people to get rid of their dirty habits and we were honored to have him in our town. Smoking, drinking, even wife-beating, and marital issues were just some of the things he helped with. Or so we thought. The town seemed to change overnight and crime went down. A few months passed and things started to get a little weird. Normal, everyday people started committing crimes. Robbery, burglary, assault, things these people normally wouldn't do. A lot of the robberies, the money or jewelry were never recovered but those who did the crime were, though they seemed to not remember committing the crimes. Then one night, a loving husband and father murdered his whole family in cold blood. I remember that night very clearly for I was the one who was the lead investigator. When he was found, the man had a hollow look about him, like he wasn't himself."

"That's what Nancy looked like when we came in!" Joe cried. "And then she seemed to snap out of it when she saw us."

"Exactly," McGinnis said. "When the man snapped out of it, he went a bit crazy, not knowing why he did it. Our investigation brought us to Dr. Cosgrove and we thought he would help us since this man was his regular patient. In fact, all of the people who committed these crimes were his patients. It turned out that Cosgrove was behind the whole thing but to this day, we still don't understand how he did it. His patients couldn't tell us since they didn't even know they were committing the crimes."

"What happened to the man who killed his family?" asked Frank, curious.

"He killed himself before anyone could clear his name because he was so upset at what he did," McGinnis said sadly. "He was one of the town's best lawyers, too besides Carson."

"Then what does this have to do with you?" Joe asked.

"Because he's been compromised," Fenton answered. "Am I right, Chief?"

Chief McGinnis nodded, his eyes down in shame. "I just regret that we didn't figure it out earlier. It will pain me if Carson dies or if anything bad happens to Nancy. This is why he does it. Cosgrove seems to like seeing people in pain rather than help them. He's sadistic."

"So, what's the next thing we need to do?" Frank asked.

"Well, there's one more thing that you may need to know about," McGinnis replied, looking up. "But I don't know what will happen to James or even Nancy if they ever found out about it."

"Why are you worried about the man who kidnapped Nancy?" Joe asked angrily.

"Because, Cosgrove is responsible for the death of Nancy's mother, Kate Austin and I don't think if he knew about it, he would be working with the doctor."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

"Wait, what?" asked Joe, a little confused. "Nancy told us her mother died in a car accident. She didn't say anything about her mother being murdered."

"That's because she doesn't know," McGinnis replied, looking at Joe. "Just like the whole thing with James, Carson decided to keep that from her as well."

"And here I thought my family had issues," Joe muttered.

"Who else knows though?" asked Fenton, ignoring Joe's remark.

"Not many," answered McGinnis. "Hannah knows and maybe one other person. We wanted to keep it that way so it wouldn't get back to Nancy as she grew older. She has a scar from the accident too."

"She was in it?" cried Joe. "Nancy didn't say that!"

"Well, she has her reasons but then again she may not even remember it happening," McGinnis stated. "The scar itself is so small that no one would even think it was a scar but maybe a birthmark. It's on her head, near her temple."

"You know," Joe started. "I think I may have seen it but like you said, I thought it was a birthmark."

"But why would Cosgrove have a grudge against Carson?" Fenton asked. He noticed Frank was a little quiet and looked over to see his son sitting on a wooden chair, a glassy look in his eyes.

"Well, remember the man I told you about?" the Chief asked. He followed Fenton's gaze to Frank as well, getting a little concerned for him. "The one who killed his family? He was a close friend of Carson's and was assigned to defend Cosgrove when he was arrested. Well, the doctor didn't like the man very much and Cosgrove saw him as a patient to get rid of his smoking habit. Long story short, Cosgrove really wanted Carson because of his history with keeping secrets, mainly the one about James. Carson was then assigned when his friend was arrested but he did something the doctor never anticipated."

"What's that?" asked Joe.

"Carson knew Cosgrove wasn't innocent and he removed himself from the trial," McGinnis continued, keeping his eye on Frank nearby. He rose from the chest and walked slowly over to him while still continuing his story. "Some believe he dumped the doctor because he found out what Cosgrove was doing to his patients. Others believe he stuck to his principle of only defending those he knows are innocent. Only Carson can tell you why he left Cosgrove high and dry but the good doctor didn't take it very well. What Carson didn't know was that Kate went to see the doctor months before for depression and Cosgrove must have set her off somehow. It's unknown what Kate was thinking when she left the house with Nancy, but the day after Carson dropped the case, Kate wrapped her car around a tree, killing her instantly. Nancy was injured badly and was in the hospital for weeks. We didn't even know if she was going to make it. She was only three at the time so her memories of it may be miniscule."

"Woah," Joe said. The men were all silent, the Hardys taking in what McGinnis revealed to them. The Chief watched Frank sway a little and was near enough to catch him as he fell over in the chair.

"I think it is high time we get Frank to a doctor," McGinnis said, pushing Frank back up in the chair.

"No, I'm okay," mutter Frank, trying to push away from the Chief. Fenton came over and took the other side of Frank to help him up.

"No, you're not okay, son," replied Fenton. "You rushed out the door earlier before the EMTs could take care of you but not this time. Joe, can you make sure we have a clear path?"

Joe did as he was told, watching as Frank objected to McGinnis and Fenton helping him, saying that he was "okay." It took all three men to convince Frank to let them help him or he was going to fall down the stairs.

"Joe, you walk in front of Frank down the stairs and Chief, stay behind while I'll walk next to him down the stairs," Fenton ordered, reaching the door to the lower levels of the house. He held on to Frank by the elbow while Frank held the banister. "That way if he passes out, one of us will be there to catch his fall."

"Yeah, I don't think I like my position at the moment," protested Joe, walking slowly in front of Frank. "He goes down on me, I don't stand a chance."

"You know I can still hear you guys," Frank said with a small smile. His head was pounding and his vision was becoming blurry as he slowly stepped down the steps with his father's help. "Joe, I'll make sure I nail you if I do pass out."

"At least you have your sense of humor still," Fenton laughed. The laugh seemed to be infectious as the men made their way to the foyer of the house, joking to lighten the mood. Fenton was concerned about the blow to the head Frank received. He was sure that up to the point they were in the attic, Frank was running on adrenaline. Now that he calmed down, Frank's head was probably pounding and Fenton was worried they wouldn't make it to the lower level of the house before Frank passed out completely. Once they were on the second floor, McGinnis took over the other side of Frank to help.

"Joe, go get some help, now," Fenton ordered his younger son as they reached the top of the main staircase. Joe nodded and rushed down the stairs just as Frank leaned over so far that the other two men had to stop. They eased him down with his back to the wall, his head lolling to the side, eyes closed.

"Frank? Stay with us!" Fenton cried, slapping his son's cheeks to keep him awake though Frank gave no inclination that he was conscious. "Damn it! That's the last thing we want right now! Frank!"

"Excuse me, sir," replied an EMT, who rushed up behind Fenton. He stepped aside as another EMT came up the stairs with a bag of supplies. Joe and Chief McGinnis stood off to the side, watching with Fenton backing up to them.

"I'm so sorry this happened," replied McGinnis sadly. "If only I knew."

"Don't worry yourself, Chief," Fenton answered. "There are times where both my sons are hotheaded, letting their emotions get the better of them. This time, Frank was little bit emotional but it's not your fault. Besides, you helped more than you know."

One of the EMTs went to get a stretcher for Frank. Fenton looked sadly at his older son, seeing that even the EMTs could not wake him. The three men remained silent as they watched the EMTs load Frank onto the stretcher, preparing him for transport.

"Sir?" asked the EMT to Fenton. "Are you family?"

"Yes," Fenton answered, nodding his head. "He's my son. Can I go with him?"

"Of course, this way, sir."

"Joe, follow behind us in my rental." Fenton threw his keys to Joe, who nodded. Fenton followed Frank and the EMTs down the stairs. The police officers milling around on the lower level stopped what they were doing and watched the procession out the door.

"Hey, Chief?" Joe asked as they walked down the steps.

"Hmm?"

"Whatever happened to the guy who killed his family?"

"Sadly, he killed himself," McGinnis said. "Hurt Carson a lot because they were friends since high school. I'll meet you at the hospital with Hannah later, Joe" he added as Joe went ahead of him. McGinnis started talking to another man before Joe could answer him.

The ambulance was down the driveway by the time Joe walked out the front door. When he got into the rental, Joe paused before starting the engine. He looked around him at the hustle and bustle of the officers, taking pictures, interviewing witnesses but Joe thought of something. He felt alone and didn't know what to do next. Frank was usually the one who planned out their next move. Not Joe.

He started the engine and slowly pulled out, avoiding the officers walking around and drove back to River Heights. Passing into the main part of town, Joe thought about everything McGinnis told them in the attic. He needed answers but he was afraid to ask the one person he knew would be able to give him those answers. Joe just hoped that Frank and Carson were going to be okay.

* * *

"Don't ever do that again!" yelled Dr. Cox to Nancy. The helicopter was flying high over the landscape twenty minutes after they left the mansion.

"You don't scare me, you son of a bitch!" Nancy screamed. She tried to go at the doctor again only to be grabbed around the waist by James and pulled back next to him. "Why are you doing this? I understand James, who can _really_ let go of me now, but you? I don't know you."

"Well, I'm not surprised you don't know who I am," Dr. Cox said, looking right at her and smiling. "Your 'father' kept a lot of things from you and this was probably one of them. He did something I didn't very much appreciate over twenty years ago and I thought I took care of it then. Seeing as you're sitting in front of me proves that I didn't and I have to remedy that mistake."

"What do you mean by that?" asked James. Although Nancy pushed him away, he moved a little closer to her.

"Nothing either of you need to worry about at the moment." Dr. Cox clapped his hands together. "Now, who wants to have some more fun?"

"You're crazy," Nancy said softly.

Dr. Cox stood as best he could in the moving helicopter and went over to her. He bent over and got into her face. Cox smiled broadly at her but didn't say a word for a few moments. Nancy stood her ground but still waited for him to do something. He made her feel unhinged by his lengthy stare into her eyes.

"Yes, I think we're ready for some more fun," Dr. Cox finally said. "Tell me, my dear, who were those two back at the house?"

"I'm not telling you anything," Nancy spoke quietly again, pursing her lips tightly together.

"Actually, that was a dumb question on my part," Dr. Cox laughed. He then grabbed her by the hair, yanking her head down. "I already know who they are but what I don't know is what they mean to you."

Nancy cried out in protest but still stared at him defiantly from an angle. All James could do is watch the man he trusted hurt the girl he wanted to protect.

"Which one is it? The younger one perhaps, Joe Hardy?" Dr. Cox pulled harder on Nancy, her scream ripping through the helicopter. "Or perhaps Frank?"

"No!" she screamed at the top of lungs. She struggled with him, trying to pull his hands of her hair. Nancy tried pushing her bloody feet at him but Cox just pulled harder. Crying and screaming for him stop, Dr. Cox let go of Nancy's hair when James interceded, pulling the doctor off her.

"Enough!" James yelled. "You have no right to do this!"

"Oh, don't I now?" Dr. Cox swiveled his wrath onto James by grabbing him by the neck and pulling him into his face. "Remember what I told you? Don't cross me, boy, or you'll suffer the same fate as Drew!"

"Doctor," announced the pilot over the intercom. "We're arriving at the house now."

"Saved by the bell," Dr. Cox let go of James, rapping him on the cheek and casted a look at Nancy sobbing next to him. The doctor sat back down across from them, smoothing his suit out. James rubbed his neck, feeling a strain on his throat. "I think we have an agreement now."


	18. Chapter 18

**Author's Note:**

 **I had a hard time writing this one. It feels like nothing but still important so bear with me on it. Please let me know if you think it stinks, needs work, is awesome, etc. in the Reviews! Thanks so much!**

Chapter Eighteen

After an hour of hopelessly driving around looking for the hospital, Joe walked into the emergency room and saw his father standing at the front desk waiting for him. Fenton had an irritated look on his face which made Joe figure that his irritation is more about him than anything else.

"What took you so long?" Fenton asked.

"I got lost, geez."

"All you had to do was follow the ambulance."

"It would have helped if it stayed around until I was out the door!"

"Sorry, son. I should be a little more considerate but my nerves are just shot!"

"It's okay, Dad. What's going on?"

Fenton guided Joe down the hall to a room where Frank lay on a bed. He looked as if he were sleeping but Joe knew better. An IV was attached to his arm, the fluids bag above him dripping and a heart monitor slowly beating. A bandage was wrapped around his head. A nurse was standing nearby taking down his vitals and watched as the father and son entered the small room.

"The doctor said there's no way to tell how long he'll be out for but he is hopeful that there's not a lot of swelling on the brain. He said a CAT scan can determine that and then they'll move him upstairs to a room," Fenton explained quietly.

"What's the good news?" Joe joked, walking over to Frank.

"That is the good news," Fenton stated. "He'll wake up but the doctor's not sure as to when."

"What about Mr. D?"

Before Fenton could answer Joe, a shrill voice could be heard screaming from down the hall. The father and son rushed back to the main desk to find Hannah yelling at the nurse sitting there. Chief McGinnis and another man were just walking into the ER and were stunned by Hannah's outbreak.

"Why won't anyone tell me anything?" she yelled loudly. The young nurse at the desk stared at her, afraid to say anything. She looked to be in her mid-twenties and also like she just graduated from nursing school.

"Hannah, it's okay," Fenton said calmly, taking her by the shoulders. The woman instantly broke down in tears and leaned her head against his chest.

"Where's Carson?" she asked.

"I'm not sure, Hannah," Fenton answered sadly. "They wouldn't give me that information either because I'm not family."

"Yes, that is our policy," the young nurse got the courage to say.

"What?!" cried McGinnis. He walked up to the desk, the nurse cringing back in her seat. "I'm the chief of police, now get me a doctor who knows what is going on!"

"Why are you all yelling?" came a voice from down the hall. The group all looked to see a doctor walking down the hall, anger etched on his face. "This is a hospital! Show some manners! And you, Chief McGinnis, should know better! Now, quietly, what is it that I can help you with?"

"Sorry, Dr. Waller," replied the Chief apologetically. "These people are as close to family Carson Drew has at the moment, so I would appreciate it if any information on him can be given."

"Nurse Carter is correct about our policy," answered the doctor. Chief McGinnis gave him a look that could kill. "But I guess in this circumstance, we will let it slide. I only came on duty not too long ago but I do know that he is in surgery currently. You will have to sit in the waiting room on the second floor but I'll let them know that you're there. Dr. Kingsley is the one in charge of the surgery."

"Is he going to be okay?" asked Hannah, wiping her face with a hand.

"I'm not sure," explained Dr. Waller. "I was only informed of the surgery. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have patients to attend to."

"How's Frank doing, Fenton?" Chief McGinnis asked as Dr. Waller walked off with a nurse.

"He seems to be fine," Fenton answered. He went on to explain what the doctors needed to do and that they had a little time before Frank was admitted. "Hannah, are you okay?"

"As best as I can be with the circumstances," she replied sadly. "What happened?"

The men looked at each other, uncomfortable. They were not sure as to how Hannah would react to the news that it was Nancy who stabbed Carson. McGinnis took her over to the side away from the rest and began telling her the story. She soon was breaking down again with the Chief holding and comforting her.

"Feel bad for her, Dad," Joe said, watching the scene. "Wish Mom were here then she could have someone to be with."

"Oh, there are people who will be here for Hannah," the man across from the Hardys replied for the first time. "I called Bess and George not too long ago. They cut their vacation short and will be here sometime tomorrow."

"Okay," Joe stated, looking at the man hesitantly. "And you are?"

"Oh, sorry!" the man laughed. "I'm Detective Max Norris. You must be the Hardys. I'm taking over the investigation from the chief. He wants to make sure nothing else bad happens."

"Ah, good, you've met!" said McGinnis, seeing the three talking. Hannah sat down at a chair in the ER's waiting room, sobbing as a nurse came over to comfort her.

"How did she take it?" asked Joe.

"How do you think?" McGinnis growled. He looked to Detective Norris. "Do whatever you can to solve this, Max. I'm counting on you along with everyone in this room. And if the Hardys have a hunch, don't sit on it."

"You got it, Chief."

Fenton started talking to Norris, catching him up on everything that has happened. Fenton was taken aside by a nurse and began talking quietly. Chief McGinnis was about to leave when Joe stopped him.

"Chief, what are you going to do?"

"Well, there's a doctor in town who has been helping with Cosgrove's previous victims," McGinnis sighed, rubbing his forehead. "I am going to go see her in the morning to discuss what she can do to help me. I feel awful as to what happened to Frank and Carson. If I hadn't been the weak link, this would have been over hours ago."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Joe said. "They'll be fine and so will Nancy. Just you wait and see."

"I hope you're right, Joe," McGinnis said. Joe wished him luck and walked back to his father and Norris, waving goodbye. "I hope you're right."

* * *

Dr. Cox got off the helicopter before everyone else and quickly walked toward the massive mansion in front of him. James followed Maddox and was about to help Nancy down when the larger man pushed him toward the doctor. Maddox yanked Nancy off the helicopter and half dragged her to the house with Sage following close behind with a smile. Nancy looked around her to get her bearings and saw the city of Chicago lit up in the distance though she still had no clue as to where they were.

"Take her upstairs, Maddox," Dr. Cox ordered, entering the house. "I'll deal with her later."

James watched as Maddox and Sage take Nancy upstairs, her protests echoing throughout the house until a door slammed shut.

"Why are you doing this?" James asked Dr. Cox. "She has done nothing to you. Your quarrel is with Carson. Please let me handle her, not Maddox. I don't like the way he looks at her!"

"We discussed this before, James," the doctor said through gritted teeth. "Not moments ago, I warned you about crossing me. Do we need another demonstration? I know she has done nothing to me but her father has. Besides, I'm just finishing something I started twenty years ago."

"What do you mean by that?" James asked, curious. He realized that he didn't know the doctor very much and had a hunch that Cox was not his real name.

"Again, nothing you should worry about at the moment," Dr. Cox said with a sinister smile. "But the moment I see a problem with you and our arrangement, I will give Maddox his wish and have his way with her."

"You wouldn't!" James pleaded.

"Try me." Dr. Cox smiled. He loved watching people squirm when things go his way.

"You win," James conceded after a few moments of silence. He sighed. "What are you going to do with Nancy now?"

"All I good time," Dr. Cox said walking into what looked like a parlor. He went straight to the bar and poured himself a drink. "Brandy?"

"No, thank you."

"I'm going to have Maddox and Sage return to River Heights in a few days time to do something for me," Dr. Cox explained, taking a sip of his drink. "Only Maddox will know the full plan but I think he'll still have fun doing it."

"But won't either Sage or Maddox be recognized and arrested?"

"If that happens then we'll just make due. Besides, I have a backup plan for that." Just then Maddox returned from being upstairs, the man strutting in with a smile on his face. "Ah, just in time. I have a job for you but it requires a little bit of planning."

Dr. Cox explained what he wanted him to do in the coming days while James listened intently to the plan. The doctor then looked to James and asked him to leave for a few minutes. Once James was out of the room and the door closed, Dr. Cox gave Maddox an angry look and suddenly punched the larger man in the face.

"Hey!" Maddox cried out, rubbing his jaw. "What was that for?"

"Mind your manners, Maddox!" replied Dr. Cox through gritted teeth. "I better not hear you touched our guest in an inappropriate way!"

"What of it?" Maddox puffed his chest out and stood his ground against the older, much smaller man.

"I may have hurt her myself physically and mentally but I don't go that far," the doctor answered him. "We need her still! Do not let me hear of it again. Is that understood? You will have your way with her when I let you."

"Fine," Maddox said. He knew not to cross Dr. Cox even though he hated it.

"Good. Now, I have a very specific job for when you go back to River Heights," Dr. Cox said. "One that requires a martyr to the cause if you catch my meaning."

"If you want me to be the sacrificial lamb in this, I want no part of it!"

"No, that would be your partner, if you are willing to let her go," Dr. Cox waited for an answer from Maddox but only got a sneer. "Besides, this job requires your expertise in stealing something."

"What else is there needing to be stealing?" Maddox shrugged. "James has what he wanted and you, well, I don't know what you wanted besides this Drew guy dead."

"Oh, this is not a what," Cox said with a smile. "But a who. Are you game?"


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

As Dr. Cox and Maddox were talking, James made his way upstairs, thinking to check in on Nancy to make sure she was okay. He really didn't care what Dr. Cox did to him and he didn't trust Maddox. The smile the man had on his face made James all the more nervous. He knocked on the door but heard no answer and unlocked it, opening into a spacious room that seemed empty. James heard mumbling and noises coming from the open bathroom door, he walked over to find Nancy sprawled on the floor, her feet a bloody mess and tears streaming down her face. She was trying to clean herself up but it wasn't turning out the way she wanted.

"Here, let me help you," James said gently. He kneeled down and took the antiseptic and cotton balls from her. As he started cleaning her feet, she winced in pain but didn't cry out. A few minutes later, James put the cap back onto the bottle and cleaned up the leftover medical supplies as she tried to get up from the floor. He put out a hand to help her up but she slapped it away.

"I don't want or need your help," Nancy said, struggling to rise. She had her hands on the sink but when she put weight onto her feet, she stopped due to the pain.

"Well, then you should have said something before when I helped you with your bandages," James smiled, watching her struggle. After a few seconds he asked again. "Do you want my help yet?"

She stopped trying to get up and looked at him skeptically. She wasn't sure what he was trying to do by being nice to her but she rolled her eyes and held out her hand for help. James gently helped her to her feet and guided her out of the room.

"Why are you doing this?" Nancy asked softly climbing onto the bed. She looked down at her gown and knew a lost cause when she saw one.

"Here, there are clothes for you in the dresser," James said, ignoring the question. "I'll give you some privacy to change."

He left the room and went downstairs for something for Nancy to eat. James returned twenty minutes later with a tray in hand and knocked on the door. He entered after unlocking the door again and noticed she was sitting at the fireplace, thinking. Nancy did change her clothes, wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, her hair pulled back into a braid.

"Here's some food I brought you from the kitchen, if you would like to have any," James said, bringing the tray to the table in front of her.

"What is going on here?" Nancy asked, looking at James. She felt like he was trying too hard, almost as if everything he had done to her was nothing. "I don't know what kind of game you are playing at but know that I am not giving in to it."

"I'm sorry, Nancy," James replied sadly, sitting down across from her. "I thought everything would be different when you first came. I just didn't expect so much to go wrong."

"Really?" Nancy looked at him, her blue eyes full of rage. "You expected Ned to die? Or for you to shoot the boy who killed him? What about what, whoever he is, is doing to me? Did you think about that before you ruined my life?"

"I didn't know any of that was going to happen!" cried James. "I know I seemed cocky and sure of myself when I was at your house but I thought I was in charge at the time. What I didn't know was that I was a pawn in all this just as you are. I wanted so badly for Carson to be hurt that I didn't think of the consequences of you or anyone else."

"You didn't know?" Nancy yelled. "How could you _not_ figure something might happen? You broke into our house with those thugs, probably scared Hannah out of her mind, one of your thugs kills a man I cared very deeply for and you take me away from my family. What do you expect me to do? Forgive you? Well, I don't and never will. This 'friend' of yours is a creep and for you to justify his actions is disgusting."

"Hold on, I never said I agreed with what he was doing," James raised his hands defensively. "I just wanted you to think that I could be your father instead."

"Are you insane?" Nancy looked at James incredulously. "Just because you had a relationship with my mother doesn't automatically make you my father. Carson Drew is and always be."

James looked down at the floor. He knew she was right. His foolish idea was brought upon by the words of Dr. Cox, if that was even his real name. James looked back at her angry face and realized he was never going to get the trust he wanted from her. There were only two ways he could but only one of them was going to ensure her safety from those who want to do her harm. He felt that if he allowed Dr. Cox to continue, she'll be safer that way than in the hands of Maddox. Nancy was strong, just like mother, but not that strong.

"I'm sorry," James apologized again. "I want you to trust me and the only way I know how is to let Dr. Cox deal with you. If I get involved too much, you will be hurt even more than what he could do to you."

"What do you mean?" Nancy looked at him but realized that he was giving her up to this doctor. "Please, don't do this. Call my dad. Tell him where we are. Do something to defy this guy but don't give in!"

James opened the door revealing Dr. Cox standing there with two of his men. The doctor looked a bit annoyed that James was in the room but changed when he saw how upset Nancy was. He smiled broadly and patted James on the shoulder as the younger man left. James still heard her screaming for him as he walked down the hall away from her room, his heart breaking at what he just did to her.

* * *

"Looking good, Mr. D.!" Joe said enthusiastically. Carson was sitting up in his bed, eating what looked like hospital food as Fenton and Joe walked in. Hannah turned around and smiled broadly at them.

"Felling good, Joe," Carson said happily. He looked around the Hardys for someone else. "Where's Frank?"

"You didn't tell him?" Fenton asked Hannah.

"Well, I didn't want to worry him even more with everything going on," she pleaded.

"Tell me what?" Carson asked looking at each of them. "I won't break, you know."

"We know, dear," Hannah said cautiously. "But you only got out of surgery early this morning and the more stress you have, the longer your recovery."

"Just tell me," Carson stated, slightly irritated.

"Well, Frank is in another part of the hospital," Fenton said slowly. "The doctors said it could be a while before he wakes up. He has a concussion and a little bit of swelling on his brain but no skull fracture, blessfully."

"What happened?" Carson asked concerned. "He seemed fine when I saw him briefly at the house."

"We believe he was hit on the head with something before we arrived at the house," Fenton answered. "Adrenaline pushed him and when he started slowing down, he crashed."

"We're just waiting for him to wake up now," continued Joe. "So we stopped by to see you and ask you a question, if you don't mind."

"Shoot." Carson took a bite out of his sandwich though Hannah looked mad that he agreed to answer anything at the moment.

"Well, we wanted to know your history with this Dr. Cosgrove," Joe said uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his neck. Carson stopped chewing and looked at the Hardys blankly.

"What do you want to know?" he asked after swallowing and taking a sip of water.

"Mainly why he would carry a grudge against you," Fenton said before Joe could continue.

"Carson, don't," Hannah pleaded. He silenced her with his hand.

"Hannah said that you spoke with Chief McGinnis before he went home," Carson said. "He didn't say anything about this?"

"The Chief did tell us a few things that were helpful in a way but not what you know personally about the man," Fenton said. "Why did you drop his case?"

"Ah, yes, hmm, that." Carson stared at the meal in front of him and pushed it away to get comfortable. "You might want to pull up a chair and settle in. It may take a while."

"We have the time," Fenton said, grabbing a nearby chair and sitting down. Joe followed suit and sat down next to his father. "The nurses know where to find us if anything changes with Frank."

"I'm sure the Chief told you about my friend, Mark." Fenton and Joe both nodded their head in acknowledgment though they didn't know the man's name. "He was a good person and a damn good lawyer. At the time, we were working out of the Public Defender's Office, not much money but it was a good start to our careers. He was initially assigned to Dr. Cosgrove's trial and after the first meeting with his client, Mark seemed different. He wasn't his normal, outgoing self and seemed very distant to those around him. In a matter of days, he was a completely different man. Ashley, his wife, came to me one night and expressed her concern. She said he was more angry than he'd ever been. Screaming at their two young kids, screaming at her, all for no reason whatsoever. Then about three weeks before the trial, Mark holed up in his house with his family nearby. Ashley called the police but they arrived too late. Mark had killed them all with a knife and didn't want to come out of his house. McGinnis was a detective at the time and asked me to come along to help bring Mark out of the house without killing him. I'll never forget the look on his face. It was blank like whole personality was wiped clean."

Carson took a pause and stared at his bed. Hannah touched his hand to get his attention and when he looked up, his eyes were wet. He shook it off but the others knew what he was thinking. It was the same face that Nancy had when she stabbed him at the house.

"What is the doctor doing to them, do you know?" Joe coaxed cautiously.

"That was the reason I dropped his case days before his trial," Carson said, looking at Joe. "When I was assigned the case, I refused to see Dr. Cosgrove inside his house. I didn't trust him after what happened to Mark and his family. When Mark killed himself, I was very upset and decided to go have a chat with my client at his house, even though I vowed never to do that. I wasn't in the right frame of mind at the time. Anyway, Cosgrove didn't know I was coming so his guard was down and he left a door unlocked to the basement. I didn't see him around so I decided to investigate myself and head downstairs."

"Sounds like something Nancy would do," muttered Joe to Fenton. His father shushed him to let Carson continue.

"I found he was still doing his so-called 'experiments' on people from out of town. He had a secret room in the basement that was not known by the police." Carson took a sip of water again. "I waited and listened to make sure he wasn't coming and snuck inside this room he left open. Every time I think about it, the sight makes me cringe. There were two people there, strapped in chairs. I couldn't recognize them because they had on goggles and headphones. I really wasn't even sure what was going on. I then heard footsteps from upstairs and hid in another part of the basement, watching the doctor check each of his 'patients.' Honestly, I think he was brainwashing them. At least, that is what it looked like to me. I didn't even care if I was disbarred but I wanted to drop him as a client. I couldn't defend someone whom I knew was beyond a doubt guilty as sin."

"What did you do?" Joe asked, mesmerized by the story.

"Well, the next day, I went before the judge and told him I couldn't be the doctor's lawyer anymore due to grief over the death of my friend. The judge granted it knowing my close relationship with Mark but Cosgrove didn't take it very well. He said that I would regret it and the next day, Kate was gone and so was he. That was the last time I saw him until last night."

"Do you think he had anything to do with your wife's death?" Fenton asked.

"McGinnis always seemed to think so even though it was ruled an accident," Carson said sadly. "Kate left a note that she was going to her mother's for a while with Nancy. We had a fight earlier in the day and when I returned home from work, she was gone. The investigators think she was so upset she ran the car off the road and hit a tree. Everything that happened then seemed like a nightmare. When the doctors said they were skeptical that Nancy would make a full recovery, I realized what more could I lose. My beloved Kate was gone along with our second child and Nancy could have joined them. I nearly couldn't take much more. Dr. Cosgrove is like a leech. He feeds off of people's misery and loves watching them squirm. You cross his path, you won't like the outcome."

The room was quiet for a few minutes save for the sniffles that Hannah kept making. She was holding her own after all that was said. Carson sat staring at the ceiling, wondering if anything else could go wrong. Although Nancy didn't really hurt him to a point where he couldn't be saved, the mere thought of her being the one to do it is what did hurt him. He wondered if she was still upset with him over everything that he kept from her. Carson wanted her back so bad it pained him to think about what Cosgrove was doing to her. He didn't bother telling the others that the doctor called him the night Kate died and told him he'd be back for him the next time. Cosgrove didn't just come back, he came back and destroyed Carson's reputation and family by using James. That was something that Carson could never forgive and he vowed to end it if it was the last thing he did.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

"Dad!" cried Joe, rushing into Frank's hospital room. "Look what Hannah brought!"

"If you tell me it's food, I'm going to hurt you," Fenton said not looking up from the book he was reading.

"No. Why would you say that?" Joe asked. "Anyway, Hannah found Frank's laptop in her car. She just brought it to me while I was downstairs."

"Great!" Fenton replied, setting his book down and getting out of the chair. As Joe was setting up the laptop next to Frank's bed, Detective Norris knocked at the door. "Come in, detective. You may want to see this."

"And here I was just coming to see you about a few things," Norris stated, walking over to where Joe and Fenton had gathered. "What's going on?"

"Hannah gave me Frank's laptop and a few things she found in her car," Joe stated. The laptop did not come on, so he plugged it in and waited for it to boot up. "We're hoping that it may give us some answers."

"How is Frank doing anyway?" Norris asked looking over at Frank lying in the bed. He looked peaceful and oblivious as to what was going on around him.

"Still the same," Fenton said sadly. "The doctors are optimistic and so are we. I still haven't called my wife though. If I don't soon, she may hurt me when she does find out."

"Dad, I called her an hour ago while you were at the hotel," Joe said looking over at him.

"You did what?!"

"I thought Mom ought to know," Joe said defensively. "She's not mad at you though. She wants to be kept up to date since she can't be here right away. There's another storm blowing through the area so flights are cancelled across the board."

"Next time you do that without talking to me first, I'm going to kick your ass, you got that, little boy?" Fenton grumbled. He noticed Norris trying to hide his smile behind his hand but didn't say anything. "Now, what do you have there?"

The screen in front of Joe opened up to Windows and a notification that something was downloaded. Clicking the icon twice, a screen popped up revealing a PDF file of a list of phone numbers. Detective Norris looked at the screen, his eyes opening wide.

"How did Frank get that?"

"He must have downloaded it from his friend online," Joe replied. Norris moved the laptop closer to him to get a better look. "He said he met her on an exclusive online chat room for hackers."

"Frank is a hacker?" Norris asked in interest.

"He can be but there are certain things he can't get into," Joe shrugged. "That's why he called on her. He said her name was Kyla."

"Kyla, huh?" Norris looked at the information then gasped. "I know these numbers!"

"What?!" cried Fenton and Joe together.

"Well, you should know the phone number from the account too," Norris said looking at the Hardys. They both stared at the computer screen to see the account's number.

"Oh, shit," Joe said and Fenton slapped him on the back of the head. "Ow! That's the Drew's house number! What'd you do that for?"

"Watch your language!" Fenton said angrily. "Why would Frank have the Drew's phone records on his computer?"

"I'm thinking that maybe while James and Dr. Cosgrove were still in River Heights, they piggy-backed onto the house phone without anyone knowing. Look here." Norris pointed to the screen to show Fenton and Joe. "It looks like the phone calls started increasing a little less than a week ago. It also looks like they couldn't accept phone calls like the Drews could."

"How do you know that?" Fenton asked looking at Norris with newfound respect.

"Well, for one thing the numbers calling in were frequently called before a week ago. Plus there were not any extra numbers calling in after." Norris scrolled through the account information and stopped toward the end. "That's strange though. The number that was most frequently called in the last week is a familiar number."

"It must have been important because it looks like Frank had the same idea," Joe stated, holding up a post-it note. "He wrote down the number here along with the address for the house outside River Heights. I don't think he knew the number though because he put a question mark next to it."

"Unless you two call the number as much as I do, you wouldn't know it either," Detective Norris explained. "It's Chief McGinnis' cell phone number. That's how they've been communicating with the Chief this whole time. Now that we have the proof as to how they've been getting their information, we can let the Chief know and shut his phone down until we straighten everything out."

"Are you going to arrest him?" Joe asked.

"Oh, no," Norris said looking over at him. "Why would we? We know he didn't do it on purpose and we do suspect as to when he was taken by Dr. Cosgrove."

"Yeah, we heard he was on a fishing trip a few weeks ago," Fenton recalled. "Heard he wasn't the same since."

"You've been talking to Cami, haven't you?" Norris smiled at Fenton. "It's okay. I know her well just wish she came to me instead. When I'm done with what I came to talk with Mr. Drew and Ms. Gruen about, I'm going to get a hold of Chief McGinnis and find out if there were any other phone calls made to him in the last few days. Do you mind if I take Frank's laptop?"

"Not at all," Fenton replied. "What do you need to talk to Carson and Hannah about?"

"Oh, I have some photos to show Hannah to see if she identifies the people who broke into the house," Norris explained, showing the file folder he put down on the empty bed.

"I thought you already did that with her," Fenton stated.

"We took her statement and had someone draw a likeness. These were the best matches. It seems Ms. Gruen only remembered two of the perps besides James."

"Do you mind if I tag along?" Fenton asked.

"Sure," the detective shrugged his shoulders. "I'm sure they won't mind your company. You coming, Joe?"

"No, I'm going to stay here with Frank for a bit," Joe said, moving his chair back next to Frank's bed. "Someone should be here, just in case."

"Let me know if anything changes, Joe," Fenton said following Detective Norris out the door.

"Sure thing, Dad."

Norris walked towards the stairs instead of the elevator as Fenton followed behind him. The men were silent until they reached the door to the staircase where the detective stopped and turned around to Fenton.

"Just wanted to let you know, Mr. Hardy, to not give up hope with your son," Norris said. "My young son was hit by a car a little over a year ago. He was in a coma for weeks and my wife and I spent every waking moment here at the hospital. We worried the whole time, wondering if Mason would ever wake up or even be normal if he did. Then one morning, I came in and he got out of bed to give me a hug. He's fine now as if nothing happened except for a few scars that are still healing. I know what you're going through but trust that Frank will come out okay."

"Thank you, detective," Fenton said. "I appreciate the hope that you give. Frank is strong-willed and I know he'll come out of this. Just wish it was sooner rather than later. By the way, how do you know all this stuff about computers and hacking?"

"I used to be a hacker myself in my younger days," Norris explained. "It's probably why the Chief asked me to take over, like he knew my expertise would be needed at some point. If it hadn't been for the Chief, I wouldn't be a cop right now either. He's a good man and it infuriates me that this Dr. Cosgrove used him like he was nothing."

"Believe me, I don't like it any more than you do," Fenton agreed. The two men went down the stairs one flight to Carson Drew's floor. When they came out of the stairs, they saw the police officer posted at his door.

"Are you sure you don't want someone on Frank's door?" Norris asked Fenton as they headed for Carson's room.

"No, as long as one of us is in there, I don't see the problem," Fenton said. "Besides, why would they want to go after Frank? Carson was the target in the first place."

"I'm just making sure," the detective said walking into Carson's room after the police office opened the door for them. "You can never be too sure."

"Well, I appreciate that but we're good."

"Detective Norris!" cried Hannah from the chair next to Carson's bed. It looked like the two were playing an intense card game before Fenton and the detective arrived. "What brings you here?"

"A few things," Norris said. "What are you playing?"

"War," answered Carson. He started putting the cards away with Hannah helping him. "We wanted to play Bullshit but we didn't have enough players."

"First of all, you're looking good Mr. Drew," Detective Norris stated.

"Feeling good, detective," Carson answered. "Enough of the pleasantries, Norris, get on with it."

"Oh, yes!" Norris pulled out the file and handed it to Hannah. "I brought some photos for you to take a look at. They match the description of the people who broke into the house. Let me know if you find the ones you recognize."

Hannah began flipping through the photos one by one. She shook her head many times and stopped at others to do a double take. Finally, she stopped and started trembling as she stared at the photo.

"That's him," she said, handing the photo to Detective Norris. "He tied me up in the dining room! His nose was broken when he left though."

"That is Maddox McCoy," Norris said, holding the photo to Fenton so he could see. It was the exact same man who Cami described to a tee. "He's a hired gun from Chicago. He's been wanted by CPD in connection with a series of murders several years ago. You can also add rape and assault to the list. Not a very nice guy."

"Oh, dear," Hannah said quietly. She didn't say it but everyone was thinking it. This man was not someone they wanted Nancy, or any woman for that matter, around. She looked at a few other photos with no reaction until she reached the very last one. "That's her. She came to the door while James broke in."

"Priscilla Anne Thomlin, but she goes by the name 'Sage,'" Norris stated taking the photo from Hannah. "She's not as bad as Maddox but they'd been a team for quite some time. Gets real jealous of other women but apparently can hold her own against men. Probably why Maddox hasn't killed her yet."

"She scared the crap out of me," Hannah stated. "I really don't want to see her ever again."

"What are you going to do now?" asked Fenton, looking at the photo of Sage.

"Now that we know who they are," Norris stated. He took the photos back from Fenton and put them in the front of his file. "We'll be putting their names and faces out on the news and Internet. Maybe someone will recognize them. We'll get CPD involved too to check out their old hangouts in Chicago. Other than that, we just have to wait and see what happens next and pray they screw up."

"That's it?" asked Carson. His face was red with anger. Hannah tried to move in to calm him down but he shooed her away with a look. "My daughter is out there and you are just going to wait and see if they screw up? I highly doubt that, Norris. Knowing who she's with other than James scares me just as much as you saying you want to wait."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Drew," Detective Norris pleaded. "But there really isn't anything more we can do until something breaks. We have to be patient."

"No, detective," Carson said raising his voice a little. "You have no idea what it feels like to sit here waiting to be able to apologize to your own child for some mistake you made years ago. The last time I really saw her, she was hurt and angry at me! I can't bring myself to know what is going through her head right now. Sometimes I wish she _did_ kill me then maybe my misery would be at an end!"

"Carson!" Hannah cried. "Don't say that! This is not your fault!"

"No, Hannah," Carson said, looking at her with pain in his eyes. "It is my fault! You don't know how it feels either. I want you all out of here now, please. I need some time alone."

With that, Carson slouched back onto his bed with no more words, leaving Fenton, Detective Norris, and Hannah to go out of the room in shock. They knew he was hurting but none of them realized how much until that moment. As the three exited the room, Hannah burst into tears and ran down the hall away from Fenton and Norris. A nurse moved away from the nurse's station, following Hannah to comfort her. Fenton and Detective Norris stood at the door, embarrassed at the whole situation and didn't know what to do next.

"Well, I must be going," Detective Norris stated, breaking the awkward silence. "Have to go talk to the Chief."

"Yeah, I want to get back to Frank," Fenton said. "Let me know if there's anything more we can do to help."

"Will do, Mr. Hardy," Norris saluted and walked toward the elevators as Fenton turned to the stairwell.

Fenton walked up the stairs and onto the next floor, ending at Frank's door. He watched both his sons, knowing he would be just as angry at the police if he were in Carson's shoes and one of his sons was missing. He walked over to Frank and took his hand. Fenton so wanted to let his son know how much he meant to him. He saw that Joe was fast asleep in the chair next to the bed and nudged him to wake up.

"Joe, go out and walk," Fenton urged. "I'll stay here. You need to get outside before you drive yourself nuts."

"Oh, okay, Dad," Joe yawned, stretching. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Fenton smiled at his younger son. "Just go and bring us some food back."

"You got it," Joe said, giving his dad a thumbs up as he left the room.

Fenton stayed next to Frank, picking up his book again to read. It wasn't until an hour later that Fenton dropped the book he was reading when he heard a word uttered from Frank's mouth.


	21. Chapter 21

**Author's Note:**

 **Thank goodness for snowstorms! I'm housebound with my family so I decided to post this chapter early in the day! I hope all my east coast and New England neighbors are staying safe during the storm! Enjoy the chapter and the snow if you have it! Don't forget to review!**

Chapter Twenty-One

Frank was lost, left in darkness. Thoughts whirled around his head, people, places, events. One thing kept coming to mind though. A vision of a person whom he thinks is gone. She stretches out her hand for him to grab on to but he can't seem to reach her. She disappears and he yells her name for her to come back to him.

 _"Nancy_ ," escaped his lips causing his father to drop the book he was reading. Fenton rushed over to his son, waiting for him to open his eyes for the first time in days. He was so distracted he didn't hear Joe come in until the sound of a wrapper came to Fenton's ears.

"What is it?" Joe asked in between bites of the burger in his hands.

"Do you have to do that now?" Fenton asked, annoyed.

"Geesh, I only asked a question," Joe said, rolling his eyes.

"I know you did but do you have to be so rude?"

"Okay! Okay! I'll leave!" Joe was about to leave the room when Fenton stopped him and wrapper his arms around his son. "You okay, Dad?"

"I've just been such a wreck since your brother has been here," Fenton said, quietly. "I'm sorry for yelling at you. I just thought I heard Frank say something and I was sure that this would be the moment he finally woke up."

"Dad, it hasn't that long," Joe said, comforting his father. "I trust if you did hear something, he'll be up soon. You want your dinner?"

"Yes! I'm starving!" Fenton realized he sounded exactly like Joe when he was hungry but he didn't say anything.

"There had better be enough there for me," replied a groggy voice. Fenton and Joe whirled around to Frank, whose eyes were still closed but his hand was resting on his face. "You know you two could wake the dead with your arguing."

"Frank!" cried Fenton. He put his food onto the tray table and rushed over just as Frank finally opened his eyes to look at him. Joe came over and gave his brother a hug as best he could.

"Don't ever do that again!" Joe cried, pointing a finger at Frank's face.

"Do what? I don't understand." Frank looked from his brother to his father in confusion. Joe and Fenton looked at each other in alarm.

"Frank, what was the last thing you remember?" Fenton asked with a worried look. He nodded to Joe who left the room, a french fry sticking out of his mouth.

"I'm not sure," Frank said, trying to recall everything. "I remember coming to River Heights to help Nancy and then she disappeared. A few other things pop into my head as well but it's all a jumbled mess. My head hurts too. What…what are you doing here, Dad?"

A doctor walked into the room with Joe close behind him. He began looking over Frank, though he started to become a little nervous as to why Fenton was there and why they were acting like something was wrong.

"Stop, please." Frank pushed the doctor away. "Someone tell me, what is going on?"

"Frank, calm down," Fenton said gently, holding on to Frank's shoulders. "Everything will be okay once the doctor is done with you."

"But, Dad, I'm not sure why you're so worried or even why you're here," Frank stated. "Joe and I just got here just a day ago. Talk to Mr. Drew. He'll tell you I'm not crazy."

"Son," Fenton began, holding onto Frank's arms ad looking straight at him. "You asked me to send your laptop here and I brought it instead. Don't you remember? You've been out for almost three days now. We've been worried sick about you! Mr. Drew is fine. Hannah is fine. You are fine."

"But where's Nancy?" Frank protested the doctor once more but this time a few nurses came in to help. "Dad? Please tell me she's okay! Stop it!"

Fenton and Joe were pushed out of the room by a nurse as Frank continued to yell. The door closed leaving the father and son to wonder why Frank was acting like that. A few moments later, the doctor came out with a grim look on his face.

"What's wrong with my son?" Fenton asked him.

"It's typical for patients with head trauma to wake up confused," the doctor explained. "What he may be experiencing is what we call 'retrograde amnesia.' He'll recall certain things but not a lot, especially events that just occurred within the past few days. His long-term memory is fine but the rest of it is just muddled."

"Will Frank be okay?" Fenton asked, trying to go back into the room. The doctor stopped him from entering.

"Eventually," the doctor said. "I gave him a sedative to calm him down a bit so he'll be out again. What he needs right now is rest."

"Can we see him?" Joe asked hopefully.

"Yes, but just know it's going to be hours before he wakes up again," the doctor noted. "The best thing for you and for Frank right now is for all of you to have rest."

"Okay, thank you," Fenton said.

"The nurses can assist you if you need anything more." They watched as the doctor went to the nurse's station and placed a folder on the counter.

"This way, Mr. Hardy," replied a nurse who opened the door for Fenton and Joe. When they reentered the room, Frank was peacefully asleep once more as if he never woke up. Fenton walked over to the bed and bent over, saying a small prayer for Frank to be okay.

* * *

"Tell me again why we're going back there when our faces are all over the news?" asked Sage. Maddox was driving the car as Sage sat next to him in the passenger seat. He wanted so much for her to just shut up but he didn't bother to say anything. He knew it would make it worse for him. "This is just stupid! I could be back in my warm bed right now but no, Dr. 'Crazyman' wants us to go do a job in River Heights…again. How much longer till we get there?"

"Not much longer if you don't shut your trap!" growled Maddox looking over at Sage. "I'll pull over and show you a thing or two."

"Hey, we made a deal you wouldn't do that!" Sage shrieked.

"Yeah, but it didn't involve your bitching throughout the whole time we been together! Now, let's get there in peace before I kill you!"

Sage huffed and folded her arms over her chest. She didn't understand why Maddox was treating her this way. They drove the rest of the way to River Heights in silence, reaching their destination near midnight. Maddox pulled the car up to a small but quaint house and stared at it for a few minutes. Only one light was on upstairs while the rest of the house was dark.

"How long do we have to wait here?" Sage asked. Maddox rolled his eyes again and looked over at her. She grumbled and slouched back into her seat.

The pair waited another hour before the light went off and the house seemed silent. Maddox watched the rest of the neighborhood as it slept. All of the houses were just as dark and silent as the one they were interested in. He looked at the clock on the dashboard and tapped Sage, who was fast asleep, on the shoulder. When she didn't wake right away, he punched in the arm in which she squealed loudly. Maddox shushed her with a finger over his mouth and pointed to the house.

Fifteen minutes later, Maddox carried a large bundle over his shoulder with Sage ahead of him, opening the trunk. He dropped the bundle into the trunk with a thud, closed it and drove off.

"One down, one to go," Sage said. Maddox said nothing more on the short drive but his heart was pounding in his chest. The night was still young and he had a job to do.

"I'll wait here," Maddox stated as he pulled into a parking space. The five-story building stood ahead of them, lighting up the night. With it being in the wee hours of the morning, the building was not as busy as it would be during the day.

"Fine," Sage said, getting out of the car and slamming the door. Maddox watched her walk toward the building as if she was supposed to be there. He waited until she disappeared into the lobby before he shifted the car into gear and moved it toward the back of the building where the delivery doors were. No one was around so he parked the car next to the building and got out. Sage may have had her job to do but he had his own that she didn't even know about. He just hoped he got out without being caught.

* * *

Joe seemed restless and couldn't sleep. He felt like something was wrong but he couldn't quite grasp as to what it was. At Detective Norris' insistence the night before, Joe and his father returned to the hotel with Hannah to get some much needed sleep. The detective assured them that everything would be okay but Joe was still a little leery. He kept waking up every hour since Fenton went to sleep but just couldn't stay asleep himself. He looked at the clock reading 2:15 in the morning. It had been almost nine hours since Frank finally woke up and scared the crap out of Joe with his outburst. Fenton was worried as well but fell asleep quickly with the knowledge that Frank was awake.

"Dad?" Joe looked over to his father in the other bed. No answer.

"Dad?" Joe said a little louder.

"Mmm?"

"Dad?!" Joe yelled.

"What?!" cried Fenton, annoyed and rolling over to face his son. He rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock. "There had better be a good reason for you to wake me up this early!"

"I have a bad feeling," Joe said, worried.

"You seriously woke me up for a bad dream? How old are you? Five?" Fenton flopped back onto the bed, pulling the covers over him. "Go back to bed!"

"Dad! I said I have a bad feeling," cried Joe. "Not a bad dream."

At this, someone pounded on the adjacent door, Fenton lifting his head again. Joe rushed over to the door, swinging it open to reveal a tear-faced Hannah standing at the door in her night gown. She held a phone in her hand that looked like someone was still on the line. Hannah thrust the phone into Joe's hand and started to sob.

"Hello?"

"Joe!" cried the voice of Detective Norris. "You and your father may want to go to the hospital with Hannah."

"Is everything okay?" Joe cried, his heart pounding. Fenton threw the covers off him and started getting dressed.

"No! Someone just tried to kill Carson Drew!"


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty-Two

Maddox pulled slowly away from the wall at the back of the building. It had taken him forever to get back down to the car without being see by anyone. Once at the car, he checked the trunk to make sure it was secure then headed on his way. He knew Sage would not be joining him any longer and smiled at the prospect of a peaceful drive back to Chicago with his cargo.

It wasn't until he pulled out of the parking lot when he noticed the familiar small SUV pull in. The driver of the car was not someone Maddox wanted to be noticed by so he shifted his baseball cap down a bit further and kept his eyes straight ahead. He continued looking at his side view mirrors to see in the car stopped or turned around but it just continued on and shortly parked. As soon as he hit the highway, Maddox drove like a bat out of hell to get away from River Heights. He didn't want to take any chances from that chance encounter he just had. Once he felt he was far enough away to feel safe, Maddox slowed down a bit and pulled out his phone. Within one ring it was answered on the other side by Dr. Cox.

"It's me," Maddox replied. "I'm on my way back."

"Did you do what I asked you to do?" asked Dr. Cox's voice.

"Yeah, I did. I wouldn't be calling if I didn't, you know." Maddox took a drink from the water bottle in the cup holder. "Barely got out of there without getting caught, though I can't say the same about Sage."

"Well, it needed to be done. Any issues?"

"A small hiccup but nothing I couldn't handle."

"Were you seen?"

"No." Maddox kept to himself about the driver who saw him leave.

"Good. Get back as quickly as you can, Maddox. I'll have someone waiting at the door to help you when you get here."

Maddox ended the call and concentrated on the road ahead of him. He thought it was going to be a quiet ride until he heard thumping coming from the trunk. He pulled over cautiously and checked the trunk, then got back into the car. He checked the backseat, satisfied and drove off. After that, Maddox knew it would be a quiet drive all the way back to Chicago.

* * *

Joe pulled into the parking space and turned off the car. The driver of the other car looked vaguely familiar but he couldn't quite place him with the baseball cap on. He watched as Hannah and his father rushed into the hospital ahead of him as he thought about the driver. Following Fenton and Hannah into the hospital, Joe noticed the lobby was bustling with police officers and hospital personnel which was unusual for the hour. The three were almost denied access to the elevators by an officer guarding them but when Norris stepped off one, he guided the trio right upstairs. Hannah frantically kept asking questions to the detective but he assured her everything was fine.

"Don't worry about Frank either, Mr. Hardy," Norris looked at Fenton. "Right after you left last night, I stationed someone outside his door. I checked with him when the incident with Carson occurred and he said they were fine."

"Thank you for that, Detective Norris," replied Fenton, a little relieved to hear it.

The group got off the elevator on Carson's floor and Norris guided them down the hall. There were more officers milling around, some taking statements from the nurses and doctors while others were standing guard at a door.

"Oh, thank god!" Hannah cried as she saw Carson being transported out of his room in a wheelchair. He was dressed in street clothes and waved to the group as they approached. Hannah rushed in to give him a hug, pushing an officer out of the way. "Where are you going?"

"The doctors feel that I can leave now," Carson answered, smiling. "I'm not one hundred percent but I'm getting there."

"Well, you're leaving at my request," Norris replied. "We can't protect you all the time as effectively here as we can at the hotel or safe house."

"As I have explained to you, Detective," Carson said, a little annoyed. "I don't want to be protected. If this is what it takes for them to screw up, then by all means, let them try it again."

"Are you sure about that, Mr. D?" Joe asked, watching from behind his father. "I mean, this place really isn't the type of place the police could hole up and be able to watch you twenty-four seven."

"I know that, Joe," Carson said, looking to him. "But I don't want my life observed all the time unless I'm sick and dying!"

"Carson, this is just temporary," Hannah urged. "It's for our own safety. Please."

He looked at her, knowing that she was telling the truth. He just didn't want to admit it. Carson was so worked up about Nancy, James, and everything else going on that he's taking it out on those closest to him at the moment.

"You're right," Carson sighed. "I'm sorry for the outburst. This has not been a good week."

"No worries," Joe said, smiling. "Detective Norris, do you think they'll be back anytime soon?"

"No, I don't," Norris answered. "But you never can tell. Everything happened so quickly this evening that I didn't have time to really think."

"What happened anyway?" Fenton asked, looking around.

"Well, I was in the room with Carson pretty much the whole night," Norris began. "We talked for a while, laughing at a few jokes, clearing our heads. He fell asleep and I decided to take a snooze on the empty bed next to him. The curtains were drawn so when she came in, she didn't know I was there."

"She?" Hannah said, suddenly interested.

"Yeah, 'she' was posing as a nurse," Norris nodded his head. "She pulled out a syringe, I asked her what she was doing and she dropped it before she could give it to Carson. When she turned around to me, I instantly recognized her."

"Who was it?" asked Hannah, a little more urgent.

"Priscilla Anne Thomlin or 'Sage' like she wants to be called," Norris stammered out, looking at her. "The syringe she had, had some nasty stuff the doctor told me about but I can't exactly pronounce the words. But it would have made it look like Carson had a heart attack and never woke up."

"Wait a minute!" Hannah cried, glaring at the detective. "You mean to tell me that woman who broke into our house is here? Where is she?"

"She's in there," Norris pointed to the room with two officers standing outside. The men were all surprised to see the usual, even-tempered woman suddenly become so angry, puppies would cower. He watched helplessly as Hannah stormed into the room, Fenton and Joe watching as well. Norris had a feeling if he tried to stop her, he would be hurt just as much as the girl she was after. He let her go without a fuss but still trailed behind with the Hardys.

Sage was sitting in one of the chairs, her arms handcuffed behind her back. She complained about the chair being uncomfortable but stopped when she noticed Hannah staring at her, fists clenched at her sides.

"Well, if it isn't the prissy little housekeeper with the shrill voice." Sage laughed. "Thought I heard you out there."

Before anyone could stop her, Hannah strode over to Sage and punched her hard in the mouth, knocking the bound woman over. The officer in the room helped Sage up off the floor as Fenton grabbed a hold of Hannah, keeping her back.

"You see that?!" screeched Sage, blood running off her lip. "I demand justice! She assaulted me!"

"And you didn't deserve it?" cried Norris. He wiped her mouth with a towel and laughed. "Wait till the ladies at the jail hear you got beat up by an older woman! Ha! And if you even try to press charges, I'll make sure you get sent to prison for a very long time. Plus I'll let it slip that you are a pushover. That will make your life a living hell where you're going. Fenton, will you take Hannah out of here, please?"

Sage gave a seething look to Norris as he followed Fenton, Joe, and Hannah out of the room. Right before he left the room, he winked at her, smiling. Sage spat out a little blood in response and slouched into the chair, waiting to be taken to jail.

"Nice job, Hannah!" cried Joe, clapping his hand on her back.

"I feel better," Hannah smiled, rubbing her hand and fingers. "Serves her right. What's going to happen now?"

"We'll take her to jail for a bit," Norris shrugged. "I wasn't kidding on the part about the other inmates finding out what you just did to her. She won't be able to lie herself out of that one. We'll let her stay there for a few hours, maybe less, then pull her to interrogate her. I'm hoping to get some information out of her about where Nancy is."

"What I don't get is 'where's her partner?'" Fenton said. He felt something was off. "Why would she just show up out of the blue when her face has been plastered all over kingdom come. Sage had to have known that."

"You're right, Dad," Joe agreed. He looked to Detective Norris. "You said it yourself, Detective. Sage usually doesn't go anywhere without Maddox."

The group stood silent for a few minutes as the hospital slowly started to wake up around them even though it was still very early in the morning. Fenton thought Joe's feeling earlier had something to do with his own feeling. He looked to Joe, whose eyes went big at the realization of who the driver was that he saw.

"Are you sure your man is okay upstairs?" Fenton asked Norris. He started inching his way toward the stairwell as the detective radioed his man on the next floor. When no answer came after a second radio call, Fenton charged up the stairwell with Joe close behind. Norris shouted orders to the officers around him and soon followed the Hardys. He burst through to the floor just as Fenton was about to enter Frank's room. Norris immediately noticed that the officer he put at the door was missing. He rushed over just as Fenton pushed the door open. The room was a little too quiet which made Norris a bit jumpy. The curtains around both beds were drawn with Joe opening the first one to reveal an empty bed. As they walked up to the second bed, Fenton's eyes went down to the floor where a puddle of blood had formed on the linoleum, still dripping from above. When Norris opened the curtain, there was a body on the bed but it wasn't Frank. It was the police officer who was stationed outside Frank's door, two bullet wounds in the chest. The man's eyes stared blankly at the ceiling giving every indication that he was dead.

Fenton screamed out in a fit of rage before breaking down on the floor. Norris radioed for backup and a forensic team to get to the room. Joe just stared at the dead officer, heartbroken that his brother was gone.


	23. Chapter 23

**Author's Note:**

 **Sorry it took me a bit longer to get this one out. I have been sick throughout the past day so my mind hasn't been into writing. I do hope that my craziness hasn't gotten into the story. Enjoy! Let me know what you think in the reviews!**

Chapter Twenty-Three

Fenton got up off the floor and rushed out of the room, bumping into a nurse who was coming in to check on Frank. Joe stopped her before she saw anything while Detective Norris ran after Fenton. He ran downstairs once the nurse was turned away and the door closed. Hannah and Carson were still there but were now a little confused as to what was going on. Sage was about to be taken downstairs to be transported to the jail but Fenton stopped them just before they got onto the elevator. He had the woman held up by her shirt, her face close to his.

"Where is my son?" he cried loudly, the whole floor stopping to see what was going on at the elevators.

"I…I don't know what you're talking about," Sage stammered, shaking her head. She was obviously terrified of the man who held on to her, his eyes blazing with fury. Sage looked around at the officers for help but it was Detective Norris who pulled Fenton off of her. She dropped to the ground but couldn't get up due to her hands being handcuffed. "What is this? First that bitch housekeeper now him. My lawyer is gonna have a field day with you pigs!"

"I'm sure it's your budding personality," Norris retorted back. He looked back at Fenton who was still glaring at the prisoner. "Calm yourself down. Let me handle this."

Norris grabbed a hold of Sage and pushed her to an empty room. Fenton, Joe, and Hannah who was pushing Carson, came in behind the detective. The two officers who had a hold of Sage on the way out pulled the door shut.

"Have a seat!" Norris pushed Sage into a chair that almost toppled over. "Do you know anything about what happened to Frank Hardy?"

"Who?" Sage asked, confused. "Are you deaf? I said I don't know what you are talking about!"

"Then what do you know?" Norris asked, crossing his arms and waiting.

"I swear!" Sage pleaded, looking at each face. "I only know of the jobs I was given tonight. If Maddox did anything, he was ordered by the Doc when I wasn't around."

"Jobs?" Joe asked before Norris. "What else were you supposed to do?"

"I ain't talking to you, pipsqueak!" Sage replied angrily, looking at Joe. He tried to go after her but both Fenton and Norris stopped him. Sage shrank back to stay away.

"Then talk to me," Norris replied calmly once Joe was detained. Sage looked at him as if sizing him up before she answered.

"There were two jobs the Doc ordered me to do," Sage quickly said. "One with Maddox before we got here and then one on my own which was to be Drew. I don't know nothing about anybody named 'Frank.'"

"What was the other job?" Norris asked. He pulled up a chair in front of Sage and stared right at her. She looked uncomfortable and looked like she was thinking about what to say next.

"It was some doctor," Sage said after a moment. She looked right at Detective Norris so he had no doubt she was telling the truth. "We went to her house and took her during the night."

"Her? Do you have a name?"

"No, Maddox did and he had the address, too," Sage replied. "I just know it was a small house in a quiet neighborhood."

"That could be anywhere in River Heights. What did the house look like?"

"I don't know, it was dark but it had two stories," Sage recalled. "We had to wait an hour because she wouldn't go to sleep right away. She was still up at midnight and didn't turn out her light until after one! That's really all I know."

"Sounds like you were kept out of the loop on more than just a few things," Norris replied. "Where are they?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because they'll kill me. Well, at least the Doc will." Sage did look at each of the people in the room. They noticed she was scared to say anything.

"Who's this 'Doc' then? Can you tell me that?"

"Some doctor who hired us months ago," Sage shrugged. "He's creepy and even Maddox is afraid of him at times."

"This doctor have a name?"

"Yeah, Dr. Cox is what he wanted us to call him," Sage said looking around as if the doctor heard her and kill her on the spot. "He didn't give us his first name."

"Uh, huh," Norris said nonchalantly. "Do you know who Dr. Leonard Cosgrove is?"

"Who doesn't?" Sage said shrugging her shoulders. "Heard about him years ago. My parents would always worry about him."

"We believe that this doctor you're working for is really Dr. Cosgrove." Sage's face went white, her lips pursed tightly. "Do you think you can help us now?"

Sage remained quiet. She sat back and it became obvious she wasn't going to talk anymore. Norris rose from his chair and exited the room, leaving the woman to sulk in the chair quietly.

"What are you doing?!" cried Fenton, following the detective out of the room. "We need to find them! Now and she's the only one who knows where they are!"

"Do you think I don't know that, Mr. Hardy!?" Norris whirled around to face the Hardys, Carson and Hannah. "I can't make her talk if she doesn't want to! I'm not a barbarian! I have to give her that right to remain silent!"

"Don't you think this is all a strange coincidence?" Fenton asked. "Hours after Frank wakes up, these two show up! Then my son disappears!"

"We're looking into it!" cried Norris. "I've thought about that myself but I need time to think!"

"But what about Frank?" Joe cried, his face getting red with anger. "How are we supposed to find him along with Nancy? I saw Maddox leave! I didn't realize it until just now. He left when we were pulling in! Are we going to follow that lead?"

"You saw him and you're just now saying that?" Norris yelled.

"Just stop it! All of you!" Hannah cried. "None of this arguing is going to help Nancy or Frank! Detective Norris, we have trusted you since the Chief stepped down but now I think you are going to have to trust us to help. Maybe there is something we can all do to contribute."

"Like what?" Norris looked at her skeptically. "We don't even know who else they took so unless you can divulge that information, please let me do my job!"

"But detective, I may be able to help you with that," replied Hannah, her hands clasped in front of her. They all turned to look at her in shock. "There's only one female doctor in this town who would have any ties to Cosgrove."

"And you just happen to know that?" Norris asked, annoyed.

"Yes, I do," Hannah smiled. "She happens to be a close friend of mine and to hear that she may be in trouble, upsets me."

"You mean Amelia?" Carson asked. Hannah nodded.

"What does Dr. Foster have anything to do with Cosgrove?" Norris looked at her, waiting.

"Because she used to be Dr. Amelia Cosgrove. She's his ex-wife."

* * *

Maddox pulled up to the house and sure enough, there were two men waiting at the door along with Dr. Cox. He got out of the car as the older man came to him, a smile on his face.

"Did you have any trouble on the way back?" he asked as Maddox popped the trunk.

"Only the woman," Maddox answered walking with the doctor around the car. "She started pounding on the trunk right after we left River Heights. Had to pull over and tell her a few choice words. She shut right up and was quiet the rest of the way."

"Be mindful of how you talk to her!" Dr. Cox said angrily. One of the men pulled out an older woman in her nightgown, her hands tied in front of her and a gag over her mouth. "Ah! Amelia, my darling!"

Her eyes went large when she saw him and she started shaking her head in disbelief. She tried backing up but the man held her tightly. The doctor gave her a large hug though she struggled with him the whole time.

"You have been a naughty girl!" the doctor said cheerfully, slapping her cheek lightly. "Changing all the fun I'd done to those people! Not only that, you left me without a trace? Tsk tsk tsk! That was not good! We'll have a nice chat about all this later, my dear. Take her inside."

The man dragged her to the house as she struggled with him and screaming from beneath her gag. Dr. Cox just laughed it off and waved his hand to her.

"Love," he said, looking to Maddox. "Ain't it grand? Now, how about our other guest?"

"He was easy at first," Maddox said, opening the back door to the car. Frank lay on his side, passed out. "Just like you told me he would, he came willingly when I mentioned the girl's name but he passed out when I got off the service elevator. The rest of the way to the car was no picnic."

"Did you bring his chart as well, like I asked?"

"Yeah, it's in the front seat. What do you want me to do with him?"

"Have Perry here help you get him downstairs. I'll take it from there."

Maddox ordered Perry to guide Frank out of the car as he took the man's shoulders. Once they were out of the car, the two men carried him inside slowly as Dr. Cox retrieved the chart from the front seat and closed the doors. He smiled as he walked inside, knowing that everything was starting to fall into place.

* * *

James went into the dining room around seven that morning to find Dr. Cox humming cheerfully at the table as he spread jelly onto his toast. Walking over to the table and sitting down, James noticed an extra setting across from him.

"Who's that for?" he asking, pointing to the extra plate.

"Oh, I thought we would have someone join us," Dr. Cox said happily. He took a bite out of his toast and smiled at James, who suddenly became uncomfortable. "She'll be down in a moment. You can start eating. I don't think she'll mind."

The table had a large breakfast spread out. Other than the toast, there were eggs, bacon, fresh fruits, and yogurt. A carafe of coffee stood nearby beckoning to James. As he poured himself a cup of coffee, the door opened with one of the doctor's hired men walking in. Who came in behind him made James almost drop his coffee, spilling a little onto his hand. Nancy stepped slowly in, fresh and clean looking in a nice dress, though she didn't seem as cheerful as the dress implied. In fact, it seemed to James that she was completely different from the last time he saw her. As she moved closer to the table, he saw that her eyes were dark, the sparkle nearly gone, her head downcast as if she were almost afraid to look up.

"Ah, my dear!" cried Dr. Cox, rising from his seat. He walked over to Nancy and embraced her though she did not return the gesture. "So good of you to join us this morning! Please, have a seat!"

The doctor gently guided her to the seat across from James. She walked almost mechanically and lightly sat into the chair Dr. Cox held for her. James saw up close what he saw from a distance and it hurt him even more. Nancy looked gaunt, almost sleep deprived, her eyes scanning the food in front of her.

"What did you do to her?" James asked quietly, slowly sitting down.

"What you wanted, my dear boy," Dr. Cox said, returning to his seat. He caressed her cheek, Nancy giving no reaction as she looked up at James.

"I didn't want this!" he cried. He saw Nancy flinch at his outburst, a single tear falling down her cheek. "She's not there!"

"Exactly!" Dr. Cox replied. "You can shape her into anything you want her to be. You can tell her anything and she will believe it as fact. Isn't that what you wanted?"

"I wanted her to believe in me but not be a zombie!" James yelled. "Look at her! There's no spark! No nothing!"

"What did you expect to happen?" Dr. Cox glared at James, his cheerfulness suddenly gone. "Even the drug you gave her that first night started the change you see. I'm giving you the best gift of all. You wanted her to believe you? Here she is. You wanted revenge on Carson Drew? Here she is. You wanted a daughter? Here she is! Everything you ever wanted all rolled into a small package. What more could anyone ask for?"

"How about a personality?" James said. "She looks like a blank slate. Is she still there though? That spunky attitude I met a week ago."

"Oh, she's there somewhere," Dr. Cox said looking at Nancy. "But this time, she'll have a harder time coming back. Ah, where are my manners? Nancy, would you like something to eat?"

Nancy looked at him then at the food laid out in front of her. It was as if she were unable to comprehend what he was telling her. Dr. Cox took a bite of his toast, amused. James, on the other hand, looked at her with deep regret. He knew then he had made a mistake. He should have helped her escape days ago when she begged him to. James watched her as she finally took an apple from the basket and quietly eat the fruit as if she had not eaten in days. She finished it quickly and moved on to put eggs, toast, and bacon on to her plate.

"See James?" Dr. Cox laughed. "Completely submissive. You can stop now, Nancy."

Her hand in midair with a fork, Nancy sadly put it back down onto the plate and placed her hands in her lap. She looked longingly at the food in front of her but didn't touch a thing. James placed his fork on the table, watching her. He saw her eyes welling up but not a word escaped her lips.

"Excuse me," James said softly, rising from his chair. "I think I lost my appetite."

"Sit down, James," Dr. Cox said sternly. James slowly sat back down, never taking his eyes off the doctor. "That's better. Now, let's get down to business. We have a few guests who joined us earlier this morning and I want you to be there when we go down to visit them."

James listened to Dr. Cox talk about what he wanted to do over the course of the next few hours. He looked over at Nancy, who remained as quiet as she was when she came in. She stared at the food then looked up at him briefly so as the doctor didn't notice. It was only a split second but James knew what Nancy meant with the look and had hope: _Help._


	24. Chapter 24

**Author's Note:**

 **I wanted to give a shout out thanks to those who have been giving me reviews! They give me reason to continue this story which every time I sit down to write, gets better and better! I love writing this as much I hope that you enjoy reading it! Don't forget to review!**

Chapter Twenty-Four

Frank slowly opened his eyes, becoming aware of his surroundings as they came into focus. He immediately realized he was no longer at the hospital, taking in the drab appearance of the current room he was in. He tried to raise his hands to his face but found that they were strapped to a chair in the middle of the room. Trying to pull at his hands and feet, Frank heard a laugh coming from the corner of the room. He stopped as an older man walked toward him, a smile etched on his face. Frank desperately tried to remember the man but, like before, his thoughts were still muddled and confusing.

"I've been waiting for you to wake up, Mr. Hardy," the man replied. "Here I thought it would never happen."

"Where am I?" he finally croaked out.

"You're a guest at my home," the man replied. "I don't know if you know me but you can call me Dr. Cox. You'll be in this room for quite some time so you might want to get used to it."

Frank had a feeling that this wasn't the man's real name but his head still hurt too much to think of what his real name was. He vaguely remembered Chief McGinnis saying something about a doctor but wasn't quite sure what it was all about. Dr. Cox walked up to him, checking Frank's eyes with a small pen light.

"Not too much longer and you'll be ready," he said, tapping his hand on Frank's cheek.

"Ready for what?" Frank asked, instantly unsure as to what kind of trouble he was truly in.

"It's what I call 'reassignment.'" He laughed. "Already had one successful test and now I chose you as the next one. I read up on you and your brother's exploits. Impressive but I found that you would make a better patient. You have more of steady head than your brother."

"You're crazy," Frank said through gritted teeth, struggling again with his bonds.

"Funny, that's exactly what Nancy said before I brought her here." Dr. Cox smiled at him and laughed.

"Where is she?" Frank asked. He wanted so badly to wrap his hands around the doctor's throat and choke him for everything he had done in the past week alone.

"She's around," Dr. Cox rolled his eyes. "I'll bring her down later before we start. There was something I wanted to see again that I saw the last time we met. Just a little experiment before the fun can begin. There's going to be a lot of people who will be pleased to see you more…obedient, as it were. Now, I have to be going. I have some other things to attend to but I'll be back soon enough, don't you worry."

Dr. Cox left the room, the door clicking as he closed it. Frank yelled for what seemed like forever until his throat was sore. He continued to struggle in the chair, knowing he needed to get out but finding an escape was going to be tough. He just hoped he could get out of there before the doctor came back.

* * *

It was later in the morning that Hannah, Carson, Fenton, and Joe were at the police station, waiting to hear what Sage had to say to the police. Detective Norris wanted Carson and Hannah to go to the hotel instead but the two insisted on going to the station with the Hardys. Joe was snuggled up on a chair snoozing, while Fenton had his head lying in his arms on the table. Carson was sprawled out on the only couch in the room they occupied, fast asleep. Hannah seemed to be the only one awake when Norris walked into the room. She looked up from her knitting to see the worried look on the detective's face.

"What's wrong?" she asked. Fenton's head popped up from the table, a red mark forming on his forehead from where he slept.

"Seems you were right, Mrs. Gruen," the detective said, looking around the room. He walked over and sat in the chair across from her. "We went to Dr. Foster's house and it was wide open. Seems they took her right from bed last night without so much as a struggle. We're assuming she was drugged then taken out."

"Oh, poor Amelia!" cried Hannah. "I hope she's alright!"

"Other than the fact that she's Cosgrove's ex-wife, what else do we know about her?" Fenton asked, rubbing his eyes. He let out a long yawn and stretched in the chair.

"She's been working with Dr. Cosgrove's previous victims," Norris answered. "Chief McGinnis even started seeing her a few days ago when he stepped down from the case. He's not happy about her disappearing."

"How is he doing?" Hannah asked concerned.

"You can ask him yourself," Norris stated. "He's in his office."

"I thought he wasn't coming in until everything was over?"

"He was until Dr. Foster was taken." Norris looked at her. "Like I said, he's not happy about it. Don't worry though. I have his cell phone and we are monitoring all calls coming into his office."

"What about Sage?" Fenton asked. He looked over at Joe, who was drooling on the chair, and shook his head.

"We're going to interrogate her soon," Norris answered. "She's asked for a lawyer though so we have to wait until one arrives from the Public Defender's office before we can talk to her. I decided not to put her in the county lock up because I was worried someone might get to her to keep her quiet. She's downstairs in our jail waiting for the lawyer."

"What can we do till the interrogation is over?" asked Hannah.

"Well, you shot down my suggestion to go back to the hotel," Norris replied. "So, right now, I'm not sure. It's the waiting game again."

The door opened suddenly and an officer came in to speak with Norris. He nodded and turned back to Hannah and Fenton.

"Speak of the devil," Norris smiled. "He's here. But I have to give them time to speak beforehand. You stay here and um, catch some sleep. That goes for you too, Hannah."

"I'll sleep when Nancy, Amelia, and Frank are back," Hannah stated sternly. Norris saw the look of determination on the woman's face and knew it was moot to say anything more about sleep.

"Okay," Norris shrugged. He got up to go out of the room. "I know it's not the Ritz but if there's anything we can do for you, please let us know. And, uh, Mr. Hardy?"

"Yeah," Fenton looked sleepily at the detective.

"Tell Joe to wipe his mouth and the chair when he wakes up."

* * *

James followed Dr. Cox downstairs to the basement of the house. He kept turning around to watch Nancy silently trail behind him, with Maddox close at hand. The doctor said he had a few guests he wanted James and Nancy to see before the day was over. It was close to the middle of the afternoon when the doctor summoned him. Nancy had been allowed to rest right after she left breakfast that morning and James immediately noticed a change in her demeanor though she was still as disheartening as she was before. She still walked with her head down, arms close to her to stay away from Maddox, who had taken interest in her again. It irked James immensely to see Maddox so close to her but he felt a little relief knowing she was trying to steer clear of him when she could.

"Here we are at our first guest!" announced Dr. Cox. He unlocked a door revealing a cell with a woman sitting on a cot. James had never seen the woman before but she cringed somewhat when she saw the doctor. "Leave us, Maddox."

The larger man tried to take Nancy with him but was scolded by the doctor that she was to stay. Maddox grumbled and reluctantly left the room, slamming the door behind him, causing Nancy to jump. When the doctor knew Maddox was gone, he guided Nancy over to the cell, smiling at the woman.

"My dear, Amelia," replied Dr. Cox. "Let me introduce you to Nancy. She has been my guest here for the past week and has come a remarkable way from what she was before."

"Oh, my!" cried Amelia, walking up to the bars to take a closer look at Nancy. "What did you do to her?"

"Since you left me all those years ago and took some of my research with you, I had to start from scratch almost." Dr. Cox frowned at her. "I did have some help here and there including recently when I was hired to perfect my methods. I think I may have done so with her. She may not look it but one word can make her into a anything I want her to be. For example, she could easily walk into a building and take out an entire group of people before being taken down herself. Do you like that idea?"

"Why would you do this to her, of all people?" asked Amelia.

"You know my history with her father, Amelia," Dr. Cox replied, stroking Nancy's hair. "He put me out to dry over twenty years ago, forcing me into hiding. I wanted to do something that would bring his world crashing down on top of him. I did that with her and she is just icing on the cake. She's wholesome and the everyday girl. No one would even suspect."

"What you've done is destroyed lives," Amelia spat back. "Beginning all those years ago and it looks like it's even worse now. She's practically a child! Again, I ask why?"

"You should know why!" Dr. Cox yelled. "James here helped me acquire her with the thought that he could make her change without any manipulation. Can you believe that? I knew from the start she wasn't going to do that without my work and look what I have now! I have a perfectly compliant young woman who could be sold to the highest bigger if I wanted it!"

"Hey! We had a deal!" cried James, stepping forward, tired of hearing the doctor speak of Nancy as if she were a commodity.

"A deal that could be changed at any time!" stated Dr. Cox. He turned to look at James, grabbing Nancy by the throat. "I could kill her now! Just try to stop me but I doubt if you would be quick enough! It would be a loss but I have someone else in mind to be a part of this too! She is just as expendable as you are!"

James and Dr. Cox glared at each other, Nancy sputtering for breath between them. Amelia reached through the bars, trying to release Nancy, who was turning blue. At the last moment, Dr. Cox let her go, Nancy dropping to the ground, gasping for breath. As Amelia bent over to comfort her, she saw one moment of clarity in her eyes. When their eyes met briefly, Amelia shook her head for Nancy not to let Dr. Cox see. She nodded briefly, looking at the doctor out of the corner of her eye. Dr. Cox grabbed Nancy by the hair and pulled her up to face James again. She kept her face as stoic as she could but James saw as Amelia did. Nancy was aware though Dr. Cox did not see it.

"I told you, James," Dr. Cox said through clenched teeth. "Do not cross me but yet you continue to do so. How far do I have to go to convince you that you have no power?"

The doctor let go of Nancy's hair and the brief awareness she held was gone once again. He laughed at James and punched him in the gut, doubling him over.

"Do you honestly think I would harm her?" Dr. Cox said quietly into his ear. "Get up!"

"What is it that you want from me?" asked Amelia from behind the bars. She wanted to take the doctor's attention off of both James and Nancy. Her eyes seemed to plead with her ex-husband but he just stared at her in return.

"I just wanted to see you again, my love," he replied, reaching for her between the bars. Dr. Cox caressed her cheek but she shied away, rubbing the spot as if she were burned. "I wanted you to see the amazing things that I have accomplished. I wanted to you to respect my work like you once did."

"Leo, I loved you!" Amelia replied softly, tears flowing. "Not your work. What you did to those people. What you're doing now. How can I respect your work when you're doing such terrible things to people?"

Dr. Cox stared at Amelia, confused as to why she didn't want to listen to his reason. He saw in that moment he had lost the only woman he ever loved. She didn't hate him but she couldn't bring herself to love him anymore after everything he'd done. Dr. Cox took a step back and after a time, his manner changed in to a fit of rage.

"Then stay down here till you rot!" Dr. Cox screamed. He grabbed Nancy's wrist and pulled her out as Amelia started screaming for him to return. James stood rooted to the floor, not knowing what to do until Dr. Cox called for him from the hall. He looked to Amelia and mouthed a few words at her before he turned off the lights and closed the door silently. They could still hear her sobbing as they walked down the hall to Dr. Cox's next "guest."


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter Twenty-Five

Frank could hear them in the hallway yelling. He recognized the doctor's voice, who Frank now remembered to be Dr. Cosgrove, not Dr. Cox as he said he was. Then James' voice came in and Frank's anger rose. He was starting to remember the things he had forgotten before getting hit on the head and one thing that made Frank more mad than anything at the moment was James. What he didn't know was that Nancy would be with them when they walked through the door five minutes later.

His anger dissipated the moment he set eyes on her. She was stunning in the dress she wore but Frank's anger rose again when he saw her face up close. Nancy looked tired and as if she hadn't eaten in days but her eyes were what angered him the most. The blue sparkle that usually was there was now dull and grey. That was until she looked at him and suddenly became aware of her surroundings.

"Frank?" she said softly. Nancy rushed forward to get to him only to be stopped by James. Frank noticed that James whispered something into her ear while the other two in the room didn't notice. He struggled at hit bonds as she backed up away from James.

"Oh, this just got interesting," replied Dr. Cox. He was watching Nancy as if waiting for her to react and stood thinking for a moment as James pulled her away. Without any of the men really seeing until it was too late, Nancy grabbed a hold of an IV pole nearby and swung it around to stop all of them from getting near her.

"Get out of here, Nancy!" urged Frank, shifting his eyes to the door. "Go!"

"No! Not without you!" she cried.

"Now, Nancy," Dr. Cox said calmly, inching his way toward her. "You're going to make this a lot harder than it has to be. Put down the pole."

"No! You have to be stopped!" she screamed, waving it at the doctor making him jump back. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Maddox try to cut her off so she took a swing at him, hitting the man square in the jaw. As Maddox went down, Nancy took one more look at Frank who begged her to go with a nod, and ran from the room. A clatter was heard from the hall as she dropped the pole near the door.

"Go after her!" cried Dr. Cox to James and Maddox, who was slowly getting up from the floor.

"I'm going to kill that bitch!" yelled Maddox staggering to the door. James seemed to bump into him, knocking the man over again and apologizing before running out the door after Nancy. Maddox growled loudly, storming out the door leaving Dr. Cox and Frank alone.

"You know she won't get very far," the doctor replied noticing the smile on Frank's face. "And I feel if Maddox gets a hold of her before James does, I don't think anyone would be able to stop him from fulfilling his promise."

"That's assuming she'll be caught," Frank retorted, never wavering his smile. "I know Nancy better than you and she's not the type to go down without a fight. I saw what she did to some of the men you hired and they're really no match for her."

"Be that as it may, Mr. Hardy," Dr. Cox smiled. "I don't think she's going to get very far without you. See, that's something I know about her that you don't. She cares very deeply for you and I hardly believe she'll leave you behind. In fact, I'm counting on it."

The two men stared at each other for quite some time. Frank felt in some way that the doctor was right about Nancy but he didn't think she cared _that_ much for him. They hadn't spoken in a long time and the last time they saw each other, they argued over a case. Yes, he cared for her but was it more than he thinks it is?

"There it is," Dr. Cox said. Frank's smile was now gone as something came into his head he never thought of. "A sudden realization. I see it in your eyes and they betray your heart. You two are going to make a phenomenal team. Completely unstoppable."

Dr. Cox grabbed a hold of Frank's neck and pushed his head to the back of the chair. He looked into Frank's eyes and grinned.

"Now sit back and enjoy the ride, Mr. Hardy."

* * *

Hannah knocked quietly on Chief McGinnis' door and opened it slightly when he made a gruff reply of "What?" His facial expression lightened when he saw her and rose from his chair, apologizing.

"Nothing to be sorry for, Chief," Hannah replied, closing the door. "I understand you're under a lot of stress. Besides you wouldn't have known it was me anyway without being psychic."

"Heh. Now there's a power I wouldn't mind having," McGinnis said with a smile. "Maybe then this whole mess could have been averted. How's Carson doing?"

"He's better considering," Hannah frowned. She took one of the chairs across from the chief and folded her hands in her lap. "He's anxious to get Nancy back. If I hadn't made him lie down on the couch, he would be the one bugging you, not me."

"You are not bothering me, Hannah," McGinnis said. "Neither would Carson. Nancy on the other hand, half of my grey hairs are from her and her teenage exploits she called 'mysteries.'"

"Yeah," Hannah laughed. "The same could be said for Carson too. I think he got a few more in the past week alone."

An uncomfortable silence arose between the two. Neither one of them could bring themselves to talk anymore about Nancy. She was a staple in the town along with her father even though the citizens of River Heights currently felt betrayed by the latter of the two. Even at Ned's funeral the day before, people were afraid to speak of her, trying to find good stories to tell about Ned. Hannah was able to attend but it broke her heart knowing Nancy missed it. Even Ned's mother, who told Carson earlier not to come, asked how he was doing, the iciness she felt towards him diminished. Chief McGinnis cleared his throat after a time, breaking the silence.

"So, what brings you to my office, Hannah?"

"I just wanted to see how you were doing, Chief," Hannah said politely. "Detective Norris told us you were here after what happened with Amelia. How are you holding up?"

"I'm better but pissed," he answered truthfully. "I want this over with. First Nancy, then Amelia and Frank, I don't know what else can happen. I just have a bad feeling that if we don't find them soon, we may be too late. I offered my services to Max but he turned me down since they were still afraid I could endanger everyone even more."

"You had no idea, Chief," Hannah said softly. "How could anyone? I know it seems like nothing could go right but with Sage being caught, I think we may finally get something positive."

"You're right, Hannah," the chief replied, smiling. "I just find it interesting that she was left behind. It was almost as if her partner _knew_ she would be caught in the end."

"I think she was a diversion, to be honest. She had no clue what was going on with Frank and what Maddox did. I don't think she even knew he was in the same hospital as Carson! She seemed kind of out of the loop."

"Huh. Right, but it still doesn't explain why. I guess we just have to wait and see if there was something more to Sage being caught. Anyway, how are Fenton and Joe holding up?"

"Last time I checked, Joe was still sleeping. He could be riding on a dump truck and still get a full night's rest." Hannah laughed. "As for Fenton, he got some sleep but now he's anxious. He said that Frank woke up yesterday but he had something called 'retrograde amnesia.' Something about not being able to remember certain recent events. He's concerned about his son which is understandable. Fenton did say that Laura was finally on her way here but he hasn't told her the latest development yet. Anyway, it scares me that they're out there and we have no idea where they may be."

"He woke up, huh? That's interesting and too coincidental," McGinnis replied. He sat thinking for a few moments. "Well, feeling the way you do, Hannah, shows how much you really care for the Drews. But you have to have faith that everything will turn out the way we want them to, good and bad. We just have to be patient."

"I know. Well, I'd better get back," Hannah said, getting up from her chair. "Carson will be wondering where I'm at and I'm sure Detective Norris will be getting us soon to witness Sage's interrogation."

"Take care, Hannah."

"You too." The pair smiled at each other briefly before Hannah started to leave.

"Hannah?" She turned back to the chief. "Don't worry about Nancy, Frank, and Amelia. They are all strong willed people and will be just fine. You'll see."

* * *

James ran down the hall after Nancy hoping she understood what he asked her to do. He checked the direction he came from for Maddox before opening the door to the cell. Reaching up to the camera mounted on the wall, James pulled the plug and turned on the light. He made sure the door was locked before walking over to Nancy who was huddled near Amelia. It seemed that the doctor was trying to calm her down a bit by talking softly to her and stroking Nancy's hair. James tried to reach for her but she cowered away from his touch.

"Don't touch me," Nancy whispered. She looked at him from over her knees that drawn were to her body.

"It's okay, Nancy," whispered Amelia soothingly. "I don't think he's going to harm you. Are you?"

"I would never," James said, reaching for Nancy again. He touched her head and this time, she allowed it. "I'm going to get you out of here. I promise. It may not be now but soon. You too, Dr. Foster. I'm sorry for all of this. So sorry. I didn't know he was going to do any of this."

"How would you have known, dear?" Amelia asked quietly. "My ex-husband is a monster, creating weapons out of people. This poor girl and the young man I saw earlier. I don't think either one of them realize how much damage has been done or will be done, for that matter."

"I…I don't know what to believe anymore," Nancy stammered, shaking. "My father…I can't face him again after what I've done to him. That's if he's even okay!"

"Knowing Carson," James replied taking her by the shoulders and looking into her eyes. "He's fine and he will forgive you. I am truly sorry for this but we have to get back to the doctor before he realizes anything is amiss. Both you and your friend need to remember who you really are. Don't let this beat you or you'll never come back from it. Do you understand?"

"Sound advice, Nancy," Amelia said. "I think you should believe him."

Nancy stared into his eyes and then looked to Amelia who nodded. She wiped her face with her hand and nodded. James gave her instructions and walked to the door leaving her behind. He peered out into the hallway to see if it was empty, turning off the light to the room. He reached up to the camera again, this time plugging it back in. He silently closed the door but immediately opened it back up again, turning on the light. James grabbed a hold of Nancy and ripped her out of the room as if he just found her.

"Ah, good, James!" cried Dr. Cox who just rounded the corner. "You found her! See, my dear, I knew you wouldn't get far. Nice job, my boy!"

James smiled at the doctor but kept Nancy close when he heard a noise behind him. He swirled around to see Maddox stopping a few feet away, his eyes narrowed. The larger man had a scowl on his face, looking from James to Nancy.

"I don't trust him, Dr. Cox," Maddox stated.

"I don't trust anyone, my dear Maddox," the doctor retorted back. "Not even you but I do trust that even James knows not to try to help her. He knows the consequences. Come! We have much to do and my dear, you are going back to your room for some more…training."

"What!" cried James, holding on to Nancy who shrank into his arms. "You said she was done! You said so this morning!"

"Yes, but new developments have occurred and she needs to be… oh, what's the word?" Dr. Cox tapped a finger on his chin, mock thinking then his eyes widened with an epiphany. "Tweaked! That's it! Oh, I love it! Ha!"

"Well, I don't!" James said. "The plan keeps changing every time! When will it stop?"

"When the test run begins," Dr. Cox stated with a smile. He stared at James, waiting. James soon sighed and handed over Nancy, who started struggling and screaming as Maddox grabbed her by the waist. She started kicking him as he lifted her off the ground to take her upstairs. "Good boy."

"When does this test run begin, anyway?" James asked, sadly watching Nancy being taken away.

"You'll see soon enough." Dr. Cox winked at James, following Maddox leaving James to listen as Nancy's screams grew fainter.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter Twenty-Six

Detective Norris walked into the interrogation room with a file folder under his arm. Sage was handcuffed to the table while her public defender sat next to her. He looked extremely young and very nervous, casting a look at Sage every so often. The detective strode, stone-faced over to the table and plopped the folder down. The three remained silent for a few minutes, just staring at each other.

"So, Priscilla," Norris stated. He smiled when Sage cringed at the sound of her given name. "Where are they?"

"Detective Norris, I'm Miles Williams. I'll be representing Ms. Thomlin," the public defender said, his voice shaking slightly. Norris wouldn't have been surprised if the kid's voice cracked since he looked like he just hit puberty. "My client and I have discussed our options. Ms. Thomlin, or 'Sage' as she likes to be called, doesn't want to talk for fear of her life. She believes no matter what she says, this doctor who hired her will find a way to kill her."

"We can protect her," answered Norris. "I can guarantee it."

"What of Chief McGinnis?" Miles asked, raising his eyebrows. It seemed his confidence had risen.

"What of him?"

"My client, not to implicate herself but, she has indicated that he may be compromised."

"Did she now?" Norris looked to Sage, who smirked at him. "Well, your 'client' needs to know that we have everything in hand including Chief McGinnis. We are aware of his situation and have taken care of it. Now, as I asked earlier, 'Where are they?'"

The attorney looked over to his client where her smirked had suddenly changed the moment she heard they knew about McGinnis already. He leaned over and started talking to her quietly.

"I want immunity," she suddenly said, looking at Norris. "And the protection."

"The protection, yes, I already told you that," Norris said. "As for the immunity, that has been off the table since you helped kidnap one of this town's most respected citizens. I can get you a lesser sentence but not immunity."

"The immunity is not negotiable, Detective." Sage sneered gleefully at him and leaning forward. "Without my help, you won't find any of them until they're already gone."

"Without me, honey, you won't be able to so much as take a dump without me standing by your side waiting for you tell me what I need to know. That I can pretty much guarantee." This time, Norris smiled as Sage's face melted. He knew he got her attention. Now he just needed the information. "So, 'Priscilla,' what say you?"

Sage sat, breathing heavily, watching Norris. Her face was filled with rage and anger but she knew he was telling the truth. She wouldn't be able to do anything until she told him something. She looked to her attorney who sat in his chair, white as a sheet.

"I want to talk to my lawyer in private please."

It was over two hours later when he finally returned to the room after Miles knocked on the door. Sage was sulking in the chair though her attorney seemed happy.

"What have you got for me?" Norris asked as he sat down.

"My client divulged to me everything she is about to tell you," Miles stated. "It may help, it may not. She has some things that she'd like in return though."

"It all depends on what she has to offer, understand?" Norris took a paper from the attorney. "I'll be right back."

Norris went in to the room adjacent to the interrogation room where a two-way mirror stood showing Sage and her attorney sitting quietly. Carson, Hannah, Fenton, and Joe were all waiting in the room along with an assistant District Attorney named Nora Miller to hear what Sage had to say. Norris handed the list to the ADA, who skimmed over it.

"Well, at least she's not crazy," Nora replied. She started scratching off some of the things on the list with her pen. "I must say she has balls to ask for some of this but then again she asked for immunity right off the bat. I can handle most of this stuff, as long as she delivers."

"I agree," Norris said.

"Are we sure we want to give her some of this?" asked Joe.

"Seriously?" asked Norris, looking at Joe as if he grew another head. "Do you want your brother back?"

"Point taken." Joe slumped into the corner.

"Tell her we agree to certain things except for those I crossed off," Nora replied, handing the list back to Norris. "We need to catch these guys this time. No screw ups."

"You got it." Norris went back into the interrogation room and handed the revised list to the attorney. Sage frowned and leaned back into the chair as far as her handcuffed hands would allow her.

"Are we good?" Norris asked. "You'll notice the ADA has agreed to some but not all of your 'demands.'"

Miles looked to Sage who nodded in agreement with a sigh.

"We agree."

"I don't know the address of the house," Sage said right away. "We arrived there by helicopter and Maddox did all the driving around. It was the first time I had ever been to a house that big. It was bigger than the one James bought here in River Heights."

"Can you at least describe the house?" Norris pulled out a pen and paper.

"I was getting to that!" yelled Sage, annoyed. "Like I said, it's a large house and you can see Chicago from the front door."

"So, it's near the city?"

"That's what I said, didn't I?" Sage said rudely. "It took about three hours to get back here from the house."

"Any particulars about the house? Is it brick? Stone?"

"I think it was made of stone." Sage thought for a moment. "Oh, and there's a lake nearby."

"Lake Michigan?"

"No, it's not that big," Sage answered, frowning. "More like a manmade lake and it's behind the main house."

"Is that everything?" Norris asked, his pen poised for more.

"Yeah, that's it."

"Can you tell me about the interior? How many men does the doctor have?" Sage went on to describing the basic interior of the house and that the doctor had about a dozen or more men within the house and around.

"Maddox is pretty much the doc's go-to guy," Sage continued. "He does all of the errands and grunt work for him. Most of the men listen to Maddox because they're afraid of him but everyone is afraid of the doc, including Maddox."

"Why's that Sage?"

"Because he's crazy! He could be your pal one moment then in your face the next. He turned on James pretty quick too!"

"Wait, the doctor and James argue?"

"Yeah, but it's mostly James whining about something and the doc calling him out on it. Always something to do with the girl." Sage shrugged her shoulders and laughed. "It's what happened on the way to the house. I thought maybe the doc was going to throw him off the helicopter. It would have been grand to see too. I can't stand James."

"Why's that?"

"Because he's weak," Sage replied, staring at Norris. "They argued about James being in some prison in the Philippines, that maybe the doc should have left him there to rot. I hear him grumbling throughout the house about things not being a part of the plan or some shit like that. Maddox doesn't trust him and he's said that a lot to the doc."

"Do you trust James?"

"I usually believe whatever Maddox believes, so no."

"Do you trust Maddox now?" Norris watched Sage for her reaction to the question. "Think about it, he knowingly left you behind. How can you trust someone like that?"

Sage sat staring at Norris. She didn't know what to say to that. She had been with Maddox for years, believing everything he said, doing everything he asked. This was the first time in a while that he wasn't sitting next to her, telling her what to say. Sage almost felt relief not having him near but felt more vulnerable as well. She looked to her lawyer then down at her hands.

"I believe my client is done," he said mechanically.

"Well, then. I got more than I thought I would." Detective Norris gathered his notepad and folder and headed for the door when the attorney stopped him.

"What is to become of my client?" he asked. "She's very adamant about not being put into the county lock-up."

"I know," Norris answered, smiling. "She'll be fine downstairs in our jail until this is all over and then we'll go from there. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go talk to some people. An officer will be by shortly to take Ms. Thomlin downstairs."

* * *

Carson, Hannah, and the Hardys returned to the conference room where they were before after the interrogation was over. Each one of them didn't really know what to say after everything they heard. They knew it was far from over but were hopeful that the end was in sight. Carson's cell phone beeped loudly, interrupting the silence. He about dropped the phone when he looked at the screen.

"What is it, Carson?" Hannah asked looking over at him. He turned the phone so she could see and let out a loud gasp.

"What?" Detective Norris asked as he came into the room and closed the door. Fenton and Joe looked over in interest as well.

"It's James," Carson said. Even he still couldn't believe it.

"What?!" all three men yelled.

"Can he talk on the phone?" asked Norris. Carson immediately sent a text back to James. Not a second after it was sent did the phone go off.

"Hello?" Carson answered.

 _"I can't talk long, Carson,"_ James said on the other line, sounding nervous. _"They'll be missing me soon."_

"Okay, I'm going to put you on speaker." Carson placed the phone on the table and pressed the speaker button. "Can you hear me, James?"

 _"Yeah,"_ James said quietly. _"Who else is there?"_

"James, I'm Detective Norris. I'm in charge of the investigation. You also have Hannah Gruen and Fenton and Joe Hardy listening in. What do you want?"

 _"You all need to understand that I didn't know any of this was going to happen."_ The group noticed he sounded a bit agitated, almost as if he were afraid of calling in the first place. _"You have to believe me."_

"Okay, can you tell us where you are?" Norris asked, hopeful.

 _"Honestly, I don't know exactly where we are."_ James went on to give the same description that Sage gave them moments before in the interrogation room. Norris nodded.

"Can you confirm that Nancy, Dr. Foster, and Frank are there? Are they okay?"

 _"Yes,"_ James said quickly. Fenton breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Joe who smiled. _"Amelia is fine. She's in a cell in the basement of the house."_

"What about the other two?" James got quiet suddenly. The group almost thought they lost him but they heard what sounded like breathing and the wind blowing around the phone.

 _"Sorry, I had to move,"_ he finally said, breathlessly. _"The house is a dead zone so I'm outside but there are men patrolling the area."_

"That explains a lot," Norris stated. "Again, what about Nancy and Frank? Are they okay?"

 _"In a manner of speaking, physically, yes."_ Carson closed his eyes knowing what James was trying to say but not really say it. They were running out of time. _"I have to go. I only called to tell you I'm sorry. So, so sorry, Carson."_

"It's all right, James," Carson said, sadly.

"James, this is Fenton Hardy, Frank's father," he replied. "Is there a way for you to leave the cell phone on and away from the dead zone?"

 _"Yeah, why?"_

"Because we can get the signal and pinpoint your location."

"Brilliant, Dad!" cried Joe.

 _"I'll see what I can do. The battery is dying so I'm not sure how much time you have, but I will do as you ask."_

"We'll see you soon, James," replied Norris.

"Thank you, James," Carson said before James ended the call. Norris moved into gear, rushing from the room. They could hear him yelling for someone to help with the cell phone. The room remained silent for quite some time before Norris returned.

"We have some people working on it now," he said with a smile. "We may be able to find the house before morning. We have the description and a general idea of where to look."

"Detective Norris?" asked Joe. "Dad and I want to be a part of the group who goes in to the house, if that's possible."

Norris stared at the father and son, not surprised at all to hear the request. He remembered that McGinnis allowed Fenton to go with the police during the raid of the other house in River Heights but he was sure this was going to be a bit different. Not one person really knew what to expect when they set foot into that house and he was worried that one or both of them could get hurt in the process.

"I'm not sure," Norris said, rubbing the back of his neck. "This is unlike it was before. You may not like what you see. Do you think you can handle that?"

"We understand what you're getting at, detective," replied Fenton, "but I'm former NYPD and Joe is experienced in…something that can help you. Besides, what if you encounter Frank and isn't his normal self? Wouldn't it be better if you had someone there who knows him? Same thing with Nancy."

"You're right about that, Mr. Hardy," Norris thought. "As long as you follow orders and stay with your assigned group, I'm okay with it. McGinnis trusted you and so will I. After what happened with Carson, I don't know what to expect from either Nancy or Frank."

"What about us?" Carson asked.

"I can't let you two come but you can be nearby." Norris held up his hand when Carson tried to protest. "I can't guarantee your safety in there. The Hardys can handle themselves and we will keep in touch with the radios. You'll just stay back a bit further with the Van. This is not negotiable!"

"Agreed," Carson said without any further objection.

"You better not be trying to get yourself killed in order to avoid me, Fenton Hardy!" a voice cried from the doorway. Fenton closed his eyes when he heard the voice and knew he was going to be doing a lot of talking in the next few minutes. He turned around to see his wife, Laura, standing in the doorway, hands on her hips and her face livid. "Now, tell me, where is my son?"


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter Twenty-Seven

"Laura!" cried Fenton, opening his arms to welcome his wife. "I thought you were delayed due to a storm."

"Oh, can it, Fenton!" she cried. "I had to take a taxi here because you can't seem to answer your damn phone to know that I was on a plane. Then when I get to the hospital, where I _thought_ you were, I find not only you and Joe gone but Frank as well! Tell me, where is he?"

"Man, I feel so loved," Joe muttered. He tried to walk to the door but Laura grabbed a hold of him by the shirt.

"Oh, I don't think so, Joseph," Laura said. "You didn't answer your phone either."

"I think I'm going to go find something to do," said Detective Norris, nervously. "I don't think any of you need me any time soon. No? Good."

The detective scrambled quickly out of the room followed by Hannah and Carson who closed the door behind him. Fenton and Joe tried to put on their best faces to Laura but the look on her face seemed to make them want to just sit down at the table.

"Now, please explain to me why you're here and Frank's not?"

"Honey, I honestly forgot to call you," Fenton sputtered out.

"Don't 'honey' me," Laura said, standing above them, arms now folded in front of her. "I'm going to ask this one more time, _Where is Frank?"_

"Um, we don't exactly know," replied Joe. He cringed waiting for his mother to blow up again.

"Uh huh," she nodded. "And?"

"And the police are working on it," Fenton continued slowly.

"Uh huh. And what have you two been doing while the police were doing their job?"

"Sleeping," Joe said quietly. Fenton looked at his son, mouth agape that he actually admitted it.

"Uh huh." Laura looked at the two men, pursing her lips.

"But…"

"Mm mm. Don't say another word." Laura raised her hand to stop Fenton from saying anything more. "I sincerely hope that when you two return from wherever Frank happens to be, that he is completely unharmed. I mean _not even a scratch_ , do I make myself clear?"

"But, how can we do that?" Joe protested. "He's with some maniac of a doctor!"

"Joe, shut up!" Fenton muttered, punching him in the arm. "Know when to say something and when not to!"

"Fenton, I already know what's going on!" cried Laura. "I'm not stupid!"

"You know?" Fenton yelled.

"Yes, I know!" Laura explained. "I wanted to watch you two squirm until one of you talked. Chief McGinnis told me when I arrived. He pretty much knew if he didn't say anything after I kept pushing, I'd hurt him. You don't mess with the mother of a missing child. Now, I'm tired and want something to eat. It's been a long plane ride."

"So, we're off the hook then?" Joe asked cautiously.

"Oh, hell no, Joe," Laura said. "You two will be in the doghouse until Frank comes home. Even then, it might be a while."

* * *

"Any luck?" Fenton asked Detective Norris a half hour later. He was sulking at the table as Hannah and Laura were talking quietly in the corner. Every so often, she would look over at him and give him an evil eye.

"We have someone trying to get it going but we are only able to get a general location," Norris answered. "Sadly, it keeps saying the phone is in Chicago somewhere, which we know but it's too broad of an area to go by it. I'm not sure how much more time we have before the phone actually dies."

"Wish we could get Kyla to help," Joe said nonchalantly, not looking up from his phone.

"Joe! You're a genius!" cried Norris, clapping him on the back. The detective ran out of the room leaving them wondering what just happened. Two hours later he was back, a smile rippling across his face.

"Well?" Carson asked getting up from the couch. The Hardys and Hannah looked at the detective, waiting.

"We got a better area of where to look," Norris said excitedly. "It's not perfect but it's better than what we had before. She was able to pinpoint an area outside the city but the signal dropped before she got an actual location."

"She?" Joe asked.

"Yeah, Kyla. Your idea, Joe."

"How?" Fenton asked. "You said you didn't know her personally."

"I don't," Fenton said. "I used Frank's laptop you let me borrow and found my way to the chat room he used. I didn't exactly pretend to be Frank but then again, she already knew I wasn't him. I explained to her I was a friend of his and that he was in trouble. She helped right away."

"Wait, how did you get on there without his password?" Joe asked. "It took me months to figure it out back home."

"Since my days as a hacker, I know how to get around pesky passwords," Norris laughed. "It wasn't that hard to be honest. Kyla also gave me a list of the residences that are in that area. Very smart cookie. She knew I was a cop right away."

"And she still helped?" asked Laura.

"I guess she likes Frank," Norris said. "By the way, there's a message for Hannah from a George Fayne and Bess Marvin. They said they couldn't get home. Snow storm stranded them in mountains. They were just able to send a message out today."

"Well, at least we know what happened to them!" Joe laughed.

* * *

It was midnight when Detective Norris was in the tech room, watching the tech try to figure out where the house was. He rubbed his bloodshot eyes. Norris was running on empty but wanted to keep going in order to get the job done quickly.

"What have you found so far?" he asked the tech sitting at the computer.

"We've eliminated several houses and properties that don't match the description you gave us," he said. "But we're having a trouble locating the right house."

"What do you mean?"

"It's almost as if the house doesn't exist."

"But how is that possible?"

"I'm not sure, detective. Maybe someone's hiding the house using some kind of GPS blocker. All I know is that we virtually cannot get a direct location. It's even worse now that the phone has died and the signal lost."

"Keep me posted," Norris said, patting the tech on the shoulder before leaving the room. As he went through the precinct, Norris wished he had better news to tell. Every time they seemed to get a break, they had to take a step back when they hit a wall. Norris tried to contact Kyla again for help but she seemed to be now ignoring him. He thought maybe she could get past whatever was blocking the police techs from finding the house.

With it being so late, Norris didn't expect to find anyone still awake in the conference room. Sure enough, when he went inside, only Laura and Fenton were still awake, talking quietly at the table. Someone had brought in blankets and pillows for the group. Carson was curled up again on the couch while Hannah was in the large chair. Joe was sprawled out on the floor, sound asleep.

"Detective Norris," replied Laura, softly. "What brings you here so late?"

"Just wanted to see how everyone was," he replied. "I didn't know anyone brought supplies to the room for you all. Are you comfortable?"

"As best we can be," Fenton answered. The two looked like they reconciled a little over the course of the hours. "Any news yet?"

"Unfortunately, we hit another brick wall," Norris said, sitting down at the table. "Actually, more like a firewall. The house seems to have disappeared."

Norris went on to explain everything the tech told him and the constant badgering he was getting from Chief McGinnis. He explained the theory of the GPS blocker as well.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Laura asked.

"Not really," Norris said. "Just get some sleep. It may be sometime before we can do anything more."

"What are you going to do?" Fenton asked. He grabbed a couple of blankets and pillows and headed to an empty spot on the floor. Laura helped spread out the blankets and got down on the floor.

"Take my own advice." Detective Norris smiled as he left the room, wishing them good night. He walked back to his office, ready to sleep on the couch he had when his phone buzzed. The detective looked at it but didn't know the number the text came from so he ignored it. The moment he put his head on the arm of the couch, Norris was lost to the world.

He had restless sleep, waking up every so often, mostly due to the fact that his phone kept buzzing. Around six the next morning, Norris was woken up by an officer who said that Chief McGinnis wanted to see him ASAP.

"Did he say what he wanted?" he asked groggily, massaging his forehead.

"No," the officer said. "He just sent me to get you."

"Fine," Norris grumbled. He got off the couch quickly and looked at the officer. "Tell the chief I'll be there after I freshen up."

"Um, he said 'NOW.'"

"Okay! Okay! I'm coming!" Norris followed the officer down the hall to the chief's open door. He walked in to find not only McGinnis but ADA Nora Miller sitting at the desk. "What is this? Am I in trouble again because if I am, I didn't do it."

"You're fine, Max," replied McGinnis. He looked worse for wear but seemed to be in good spirits. "Nora is here because she received an email just like I did. I take it you haven't checked your email yet."

"No, I just woke up," Norris explained. "Had a horrible time sleeping because my phone kept buzzing the past few hours. What's this got to do with me?"

"So, you've been getting text messages on your phone?" Nora asked.

"Well, yeah," Norris started, getting a little worried that he should have answered his phone earlier. "I didn't recognize the number so I didn't respond. Why?"

"My email said to talk to you," Nora explained.

"As did mine," McGinnis agreed. "We don't know what it meant or where it came from so we assumed you knew something was going on."

Norris looked at his phone for the first time in hours and noticed several text messages from the same number he saw earlier. He went through them and realized each one was from Kyla. Somehow she figured out who he was and his cell phone number. She was trying to contact him all night.

"Shit!" Norris cried, reading through the texts.

 _-Hey found something meet me in the room. Kyla_

 _-where are you?_

 _-you need to see this ASAP!_

 _-check your email stat!_

The detective looked to McGinnis who motioned for him to come around the desk to the computer. Nora followed behind. McGinnis let Norris log into his email and they immediately noticed three emails from an unknown sender. The first read:

 _Detective Norris – I don't normally contact the police but in this instance you need to know this. I may have found your house. When I went to check the cell phone ping you gave me earlier, it got me intrigued as to why I couldn't make an accurate pinpoint location. Someone put some major firewalls to block that entire area from sight but I got through. The address is 1935 Mockingbird Terrace. Tell Frank I said hello. – KYLA_

The second email contained a schematic of the house and grounds including that of an underground tunnel and helicopter port. Kyla didn't leave a message this time but Norris was getting excited at the prospect that they finally found it. When they reached the final email, the three noticed it held several video attachments and only three words: _GET THESE BASTARDS_.

McGinnis clicked on the first video. It showed a room with a cell and Amelia Foster sitting on a cot. An older man came in to talk to her. It wasn't until they see saw a familiar face that the three realized what they were witnessing. Nora gasped when the older man grabbed Nancy by the throat and yelling at another man. They couldn't hear what was going on but they knew it wasn't good.

The chief paused the video and brought the second one up onto the screen. This time it was a different room with only a chair in the middle with machines all around it. They watched as Frank was carried in unconscious and strapped to the chair. The video stopped then restarted again with Frank being awake this time. The older man came into view again, talking with Frank before leaving.

Several other videos they watched contained images of the people milling around the house, a room where they saw Nancy sleeping, and finally, one that McGinnis had to stop before it ended. The three of them remained silent not knowing what to say as to what they witnessed. Nora walked back to her seat, trembling. Norris stood rooted to the floor next to McGinnis, whose face had drained of blood.

"I do not want the families to know about these videos," McGinnis stated finally. "Especially that last one."

"I agree." Norris nodded.

"I…I don't know what to say," Nora sputtered.

"Let's get moving!" McGinnis said loudly after a minute. He was still upset about what he saw but was ready to move ahead. "I'm going to coordinate with CPD and make sure they meet us near the house."

"You're going?" asked Norris, heading for the door.

"You bet your ass I am! I'm going to stay with Carson and Hannah in the Van though." McGinnis picked up the phone and started dialing. "Get everyone ready, Max! The train left ten minutes ago! Nora, make sure you keep what you saw to yourself."

"Yes, Chief," Nora nodded, wiping her face. "I'll make sure the mayor is aware of the situation and that we will have our case soon. Like Kyla said: 'Get these bastards.' I'll fry them up here when you're done."

Detective Norris rushed out of the room with Nora close behind. He started shouting orders around, waking up the station. Men and women in uniform started grabbing gear and guns, heading for the front door. Norris saw the door to the conference room open, with Joe poking his head out, looking around.

"What's going on?" he said, suddenly awake.

"Get everyone out up, Joe!" Norris cried as he ran by. "We got the address and we're leaving in five minutes!"


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty-Eight

"What's going on, Joe?" asked Fenton after Joe woke him and Laura up.

"They found the house, Dad!" Joe cried happily, rushing over to Hannah and Carson who were still sleeping. "We've got to go before they leave us behind!"

Fenton threw off the blanket with Laura getting up, brushing herself off. The group was soon ready to get out the door with very little time to spare. They met Detective Norris at the door of the station. He had two sets of tactical gear, giving one each to Fenton and Joe as they walked toward him. Carson, Hannah, and Laura went to the Van, which turned out to be a large police truck loaded with radios, guns, and both non-lethal and lethal ammunition. Chief McGinnis was waiting for them in the Van, watching Fenton and Joe go with Detective Norris in his unmarked SUV. The drive would be long and Chicago's finest were to meet them a mile away from the house.

"How did you find the address?" Fenton asked Norris during their drive.

"Our friend, Kyla, was able to break the firewall and sent us the information," Norris said not taking his eyes off the road. The early morning commute made the drive more tedious than he wanted it to be. "She sent us schematics of the house as well. Damn it! This traffic is worrying me."

"Why's that?" Joe asked from the back seat, looking around at the other cars.

"We stick out like a sore thumb," Norris said, watching the lines of police cruisers following behind. "This doctor will know we're coming before we even get there. It'll take away any surprise we may have had."

"So how did Kyla know you were a cop?" asked Fenton, changing the subject.

"I'm not sure about that," replied Norris, maneuvering the car through the heavy traffic. He was wondering that himself ever since he saw the emails. "With the schematics she sent, we could make a plan through the house. Sage was right about one thing though. The house is huge and I'm not sure if we will be able to cover the whole thing without missing a few spots."

The remainder of the trip was silent with the anticipation of what was coming. Fenton was anxious to get Frank back in one piece but he felt that Norris was keeping something from him about his son. They soon pulled into the parking lot of an old warehouse about a mile away from the house. Trees lined the driveway leading up to it, while a gate and gate house could be seen at the beginning of the drive. A few specks of people were walking around the gate, guarding it. Fenton had a feeling that they were about to walk into a lion's den with Frank and Nancy in the middle of it.

* * *

Dr. Cox sat watching the news while having his morning coffee. He always liked hearing what was going on in the world around him but most especially what was going on in Chicago. The anchors were talking about some nonsense about the school system in the city then changed to the weather. The weatherman flashed a fake smile and talked about it being slightly warmer than usual for the time of year. When the weatherman introduced the traffic girl, something caught the doctor's eye. He smiled broadly and switched the TV off. He picked up the phone and started dialing. A person answered after one ring.

"Get everyone ready," Dr. Cox said. "I'll send a message when the time is right."

He hung up the phone and walked out of his room, whistling as he went. The doctor ordered several of his men to prepare for company to arrive. Everything was falling into place and he couldn't wait to see how it turned out.

* * *

"Do we all know what we are doing?" Detective Norris asked the men and women around him. They were all dressed in tactical gear and readying themselves with their weapons. The detective had just gone over the plan and schematics to the house. Even though it was Chicago's jurisdiction, River Heights PD was taking point on the mission but CPD was there to help at all costs. "Remember, do not use live ammunition. We don't know who is friend or foe in that house. If you encounter either Nancy Drew or Frank Hardy, try not to engage them. They will more than likely not be friendly but we do not want them hurt."

"What if whoever's in the house is using live rounds?" asked an officer next to Joe. "We can't protect ourselves with rubber bullets and tear gas."

"Do your best, is all I can say," answered Norris. "But we need to make sure that the wrong people don't get hurt. Non-lethal ammunition will subdue anyone. Are we good?"

Everyone nodded in acknowledgment and began splitting off into their assigned teams. Joe's leader was a woman named Lt. Mitchell. She was CPD and not too keen on having a civilian in her group. Mitchell expressed her concern to Norris but he shot her down quickly, telling her that Joe knew what he was doing. As he was following the lieutenant to the SUV, Fenton and Laura stopped him.

"You two better come back," Laura replied, hugging both men. "I wasn't kidding about you two being in trouble if Frank gets hurt."

"We know, Mom," Joe said into her shoulder. He hoped that nothing happened to him in the process.

"See you inside," Fenton replied to Joe. "And be careful."

"You too, Dad," Joe waved as he walked away. Fenton turned to his wife, giving her a hug and kiss.

"Bring them both back," Laura smiled at him. Fenton smile back and waved to Carson and Hannah who were eagerly waiting near Chief McGinnis and the Van. Detective Norris motioned for him to follow and headed in the opposite direction of the SUVs carrying the rest of the officers.

"Check your coms, everyone!" yelled Norris walking towards the warehouse with Fenton and several other officers.

Joe got into the SUV and waved to his mom nervously as the car started. Numerous other vehicles and a large truck started up as well. They were to wait about ten minutes before driving to the gate to give Norris and his team time to get into the house undetected.

 _"We probably won't have the option of surprise anymore thanks to the media,"_ Norris' voice crackled over the radio in Joe's ear. _"Keep your eyes and ears open for anything. Maintain radio silence until we are all on the premises and the house is clear."_

The radio went silent as did those who were in the car with Joe. They soon were moving, following the large truck that would be used to break down the gate. Joe watched from his seat as it loomed up ahead. As the cars gathered speed, he sat nervously twiddling his thumbs. He remembered the last time he did something like this but that time, Frank was by his side every step of the way. His brother even saved his life more than once and it was time for Joe to return the favor.

* * *

Norris kept checking a map on a tablet as they walked around the warehouse. The entrance to the tunnel would be near or at a grate in the ground. He soon stumbled upon the old grate and they all got to work to open it. Norris ordered a few of the officers with them to stay at the entrance to make sure no one escaped but he had a feeling that the tunnel was not really known to anyone within the compound.

The tunnel turned out to be dark and damp from years of non-use. Pulling out glow sticks and flash lights, they moved forward down the corridor. A squeak was heard every so often as a rat would scramble away from the lights. A half hour of trudging through the tunnel, the group came up to a dead end.

"Okay," Fenton replied. "Now what?"

"There has to be an opening here somewhere or it wouldn't be on the schematics," Norris said lifting his glow stick up to search around the wall. He soon found a niche in the stone and pressed it. The wall slowly moved open and he poked his head out into what look like a hallway. Although no one was around, the lights were on up and down the hall. Pushing the wall closed, Norris noticed that the tunnel would never have been found unless someone knew what they were looking for.

He motioned for everyone to follow him as they made their way down the hall. A door stood open on their left and when they came up to it, Norris recognized the room. It was the same one he saw on the video with Frank but the chair in the middle now stood empty.

"Oh, god," Fenton whispered, looking around on the inside. "I shudder to think what goes on in here."

"Believe me," Norris muttered, continuing down the hall, "you don't want to know."

Fenton was about to ask what the detective meant by the remark when they heard a noise coming from around the corner ahead of them. Norris held his fist up to stop the others and peered around the corner. Two men were talking to each other, with one catching the detective's eye. It was James Matthews. Suddenly, James whirled around on the man he was talking to, knocking him out. He opened the door they were standing in front of and dragged the man inside.

Norris looked back to Fenton and the officers and motioned for them to follow, their guns at ready. Just as they were about to come to the door James disappeared into, two more men came down the stairs, seeing the group.

"Hey!" was all one of them could say before Norris shot them with rubber bullets. The door opened quickly with James stepping out to see what the commotion was. He took one look at the two men on the floor and the officers who were now aiming their guns at him.

"Woah!" James said quietly, holding up his hands defensively. Amelia stuck her head out of the room, looking at the men on the floor then to Detective Norris.

"Dr. Foster?" he said.

"I hope you're not intending to shoot poor James here," she said bluntly. "He just released me from the cell and knocked my guard out."

Norris ordered his men to stand down and went to the two who were on the floor. He grabbed a hold of one and moved him into the room next to the man James knocked out. Once all three men were in the cell, Norris used zip-ties to make sure they stayed put in the cell.

"Where did you come from?" James asked. He looked to Fenton and shrank back a little with the look he gave James.

"A tunnel led us here," Norris replied. "It was on the schematics of the house. Where is everyone?"

"Most of them are scattered throughout the house," James explained pointing to the stairs. "Dr. Cox spread them out as to draw the police to specific areas. I don't think he expected anyone to be down here."

"What do you mean 'specific areas?'" Norris asked, curious. "I figured he knew we were coming but I didn't think he would want us in a certain part of the house."

"I'm not sure why," James said. "I wasn't in the loop and was supposed to stay down here with him and Maddox."

"Where's my son?" Fenton finally asked, still glaring at James.

"Yes, he's upstairs somewhere too," James said nervously, keeping his distance from Fenton. "Second floor towards the back of the house but I'm not sure you want to go up there."

"Why's that?" asked Norris looking around.

"Because it's where Cox wants you to be," James replied. "Well, at least that's what I'm assuming. I just wanted to get Amelia out of here before she was left behind. You'll find Nancy up there too but she's in another wing and more towards the front. There's a way to get up there fast if you want to go that route. I can show you."

"Why are you helping us?" asked Fenton, a little skeptical.

"Because I've seen what Dr. Cox has done," James answered sadly. "You're not going to like what you see."

"Well, well, well," said a voice from down the hall. The group turned toward the voice to find Maddox leaning against the wall, a smirk on his face. "I told the doc you couldn't be trusted and it looks like I was right. I guess I get to have a little bit of fun with her after all."

"Take Amelia and get her to safety," James said pushing the doctor to Fenton and Norris. He started walking toward Maddox when he looked back. "Take the branch to the left when you come to the fork. It'll take you to the second floor. Go!"

Detective Norris sent his men, Fenton, and Amelia up the stairs while watching James rush at Maddox. The two began fighting but Norris followed everyone up before he could see what happened. As the group approached the fork in the stairs, they could hear sounds of running and shouting coming from the first floor. The other teams were already in the house and moving forward. Ignoring the sounds, Fenton rushed ahead to the left to go on to the second floor and Frank. He stopped when he hit a door and slowly opened it into a hallway.

"Hold it!" cried a voice on the other side of the door. Fenton stopped pushing on the door, afraid it might be a hostile who spoke. "Come out with your hands up!"

"Travers!" yelled Norris. "It's Detective Norris! Let us out!"

Travers and his team let their guns down when they saw the detective pop his head around the door. The passage led them straight to the floor just as James said it would.

"Where's the rest of your team?" Norris asked noticing only about a half dozen men with Travers.

"We split up downstairs to cover more area," the man said. "We haven't really encountered anyone up here since we started searching."

"Are we closer to the front or the back of the house?" asked Fenton, looking around.

"We came in through the back door so I'm assuming we're still near that area," Travers said, raising an eyebrow. "It seems that most of the people here are downstairs."

As if in reaction to what he said, several men came running down the hall, guns raised. The police, Fenton, and Amelia only had seconds to take cover before bullets started flying. Since he didn't have a gun with him, Fenton huddled over Amelia, protecting her as best he could. There was not much cover but the two were able to push out a table for some kind of protection. The police threw smoke bombs down the hall and were able to knock out a few of the shooters before the rest pulled back.

Debris and smoke scattered the other end of the corridor. Norris took a look around him to find only two of the officers shot and no one was killed. He breathed a sigh of relief until he heard the distinct crunch of glass as someone walked towards them slowly from the other end. Norris and Fenton peeked out together to see who it was. As the dust and smoke were settling, the person slowly came into focus. Fenton's eyes went wide as he was finally able to take in the sight before him. Norris stopped the man from rising, shaking his head.

"No!" Norris said. "I told you this would happen! We have to be careful on how we approach him!"

"I need to go!" Fenton cried. "This is why I came!"

"You need to listen to the detective," Amelia replied calmly. She looked up over the table to the man who was now standing only feet away from them. "He's not who you think he is! Trust me! Let the police do their job."

Fenton looked back up over the table one last time and sighed in resignation. They were telling the truth. The man standing before them may look like his son but the eyes gave it away. He was no longer Frank Hardy.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Phew! That was a long chapter! Thanks again to everyone who has been writing reviews for this story! They are greatly appreciated! Hope you enjoyed the chapter and there's more to come soon! Let me know if you love it, hate it, or it needs work! Thanks again!**


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Dr. Cox sat eagerly in front of the video screens. Since moments after he found out the police were coming, he holed himself up in the small secret room in the basement only he knew about. It was designed specifically to be a surveillance room. Currently each video screen was taping portions of the house where he wanted the people who hired him to watch. A couple of screens were of what looked like an empty bedroom while several more filmed a hallway. Everything he planned was coming to fruition. What Dr. Cox didn't anticipate were the officers who came up through the basement only feet from where he was. He saw them enter but did nothing but keep his eyes on the prize. He watched each team of police go through the house and break off to search, eventually moving into the areas he wanted them to be in. The doctor waited patiently for the show to start but was interrupted when he heard the sound of a fight going on in the hallway. He flipped a switch and one of the screens opened up revealing the hallway outside the room and Maddox and James fighting. Rolling his eyes, Dr. Cox got up and slid open the door just as Maddox was dragging James down the hall.

"What the hell is going on, Maddox?" he yelled. The man holding James stopped and looked at his boss unsympathetically.

"He helped the cops, doc!" Maddox cried. "He let your ex go too! I was just doing you a favor by taking care of him."

Dr. Cox walked over to James, who lay in a heap after Maddox dropped him. James looked up at the doctor, who knelt next to him with a smile.

"I told you what would happen if you defied me, James," Dr. Cox replied slowly. "When this is all said and done, I'll make you watch before you die."

James glared at the doctor before spitting blood at the man's face. Dr. Cox snickered a little while wiping his face.

"I have a little secret to tell you, James," he smiled. "I don't think you're going to like it either. See twenty years ago, one of my patients was a young woman who came to my office very depressed. She didn't know what I did to people, just like every other unwitting patient who set foot in my office. This young woman was happily married with a young child and another on the way but yet she felt guilty about a few things. That's when she told me about you. Are you getting the picture now?"

James just sat there, listening to the doctor, his face getting red with anger.

"Well, trust me, James," Dr. Cox said. "She told me all about you and your endeavors. Even the fact that she didn't even know if the first child was yours or the person she was with. She told me everything. You know how it ended though, right? She wrapped her car around a tree killing herself and who do you think convinced her to do that?"

"No!" cried James, tears running down his face. "She wouldn't have done that on purpose!"

"Ah, but she did and who do you think was in the car with her?" Dr. Cox sneered. "There are times I wish she died with her mother but then again, I wouldn't have had the privilege of making her into what she is now. In fact, I think you should join us in watching the festivities. Then you can really see what you started years ago."

Maddox picked up James and dragged him into the secret room just as they watched Norris' team being attacked by the hired men on the second floor.

"Oh, wonderful!" the doctor said, clapping his hands. "We haven't missed anything!"

He watched the screen and set his eyes on one of the people on the screen. He spoke some words into a microphone then moved on to the bedroom screen, where another team was entering. Dr. Cox looked at each one of the people on the screen, finding the right one and again spoke into the microphone. Once he was done, he turned to James standing next to Maddox and smiled.

"Now watch as the fun begins."

* * *

Joe followed the team he was with into the front of the house. They used a battering ram to break down the door. Shots were fired through the open door from a few men who stood guard in the foyer. Each time the gunfire ceased, a few of the officers would enter and give cover to those behind them. Lt. Mitchell ordered Joe to remain outside until they cleared the foyer so he wouldn't be in the way. It took several minutes but the police were finally able to subdue what turned out to be only five men defending the foyer. Each one of them were zip-tied near the door as more police came in from outside.

"Some of you stay here," Mitchell ordered. "I want a team searching the lower level. The rest of you, with me to second floor."

"I'm going with you, lieutenant," Joe said as she headed up the stairs.

"No! I want you down here!" Mitchell yelled. "I'm not going to have you as a liability!"

"I'm going," Joe said pushing past her. "You're not going to stop me."

"Fine!" Mitchell said, annoyed. "Not my problem if you get hurt!"

The lieutenant led her team to the top of the stairs. There were about eight officers in the group not including her and Joe so she decided to have everyone move together, checking each room. They encountered only a small amount of men who seemed to just shoot a few shots then run. As they checked each room, it was evident that they were not being used. Some had storage boxes and furniture covered with sheets while other rooms were completely void of anything.

Joe walked silently next to the lieutenant. They had been searching for about thirty minutes when they came across a room that looked like it had been occupied recently. In fact, Joe felt certain that this room held some kind of importance. The room was very dark with the curtains drawn though it was mid-morning. Turning on a light, Joe saw the canopy bed made and the furniture seemed more feminine than anything else. It seemed like no one was in the room but he felt like he was being watched. He was about to leave the room when he saw movement in a dark corner where the light didn't quite reach. Joe stepped forward a bit to take a closer look but Mitchell called him back when she noticed the movement.

"Come out!" she yelled, lifting her gun. The other officers trained their weapons on the corner as well. "We know you're there!"

Someone stood up but remained in the shadows. When the person finally moved, Joe realized it was a woman but he didn't say anything about it. As she stepped into the light, Joe recognized someone he'd known for years while Mitchell ordered for her to stop.

"Nancy?" he asked. Joe felt there was something off with Nancy. Her hair was pulled up loosely, showing her face and somewhat hallow eyes. Although she wore heavy makeup, Joe could tell she hadn't slept and possibly eaten in days. The way she was dressed put him even more on edge. She looked like a sweet, every day girl with the floral dress she wore, the skirt seemed to flow loosely as she walked. Knee-high, heeled boots and leggings seemed to complement her but the boots looked like they had another purpose. He had seen the red lights around before when they entered the room, but Joe became suddenly alarmed that the lights were cameras scattered everywhere around the room. Something wasn't right about this.

He looked back just in time to see one of the officers inch his way up to Nancy. Joe tried to stop him but before any of them knew it, Nancy grabbed a hold of the officer, head-butting him. The officer crumbled to the ground unconscious as another one came up to her. She drop kicked him in the face before the officer could even come close. Nancy rushed to the rest of the team and started kneeing, kicking, and punching her way through them. She grabbed a man by his neck with her legs, twisting him into the ground. The carnage lasted less than five minutes without so much as a rubber bullet being shot. Lt. Mitchell and Joe were the only ones left as Nancy turned her sights on them. She slowly stepped around each fallen person never taking her eyes off of Joe. Mitchell moved to intercept Nancy, throwing a punch at her. Nancy kicked to avoid it, knocking the lieutenant back into the wall. Roaring with rage, Mitchell pulled her gun out but Nancy rushed forward and grabbed a hold of the gun, twisting it out of the lieutenant's hand. She then twirled around again, landing a kick in the lieutenant's face and knocking the woman out. Joe backed up away from Nancy as she turned to him.

"Nancy, please," he replied, trying to get her to stop. He looked at her face, seeing no emotion or recognition whatsoever. Not even a twitch. Her silence alone was unsettling to Joe. "What the hell did they do to you?"

He looked around him. The only way out was behind him and into the hallway but Joe knew he wouldn't make it out the door. Nancy was just too fast. He didn't want to fight her not just because he didn't hit women but also because he knew she'd beat the crap out of him. Joe stopped moving, waiting for her to do something. He wished she would break out into her signature smile and laugh at him for being so serious, that everything was a joke but he knew that wouldn't happen. Grabbing a hold of a floor lamp, Joe wielded it towards Nancy causing her to bend away from it. She took hold of it and pushed him into the wall, pinning him. Joe pushed back, whacking the pole into her face. Her lip started bleeding but she didn't stop. Nancy threw a punch at Joe, knocking him back into the wall and dropping the lamp. He didn't think she could throw a punch that hard but Joe could feel his cheek swelling from the hit. He slowly recovered but again, she was too fast for him. Nancy sent a kick to his face, knocking him back more into the doorway. Joe was panting, waiting for the onslaught to stop and when she stomp kicked him in the chest, he could feel a few ribs breaking even though he wore the tactical armor. The last thing he remembered before crashing into a table was Nancy staring at him with her strange, dead eyes.

* * *

Frank stood before Detective Norris, Fenton, and the officers. Seeing his son, Fenton wanted nothing more than to walk up and knock some sense into him. Norris ordered his men to cautiously surround Frank, never to let their guard down. As the officers approached slowly, Fenton peeked over the table again to take in the scene. As he saw before, Frank's eyes seemed unemotional and distant. He said nothing and stared straight forward but still seemed to be aware of those around him. Fenton took in what Frank was wearing which he thought was rather odd even for him. Frank looked almost as if he were going to a club of some sort with a v-neck tee underneath a nice, designer jacket. Dark jeans and polished shoes completed the look but Fenton's gaze returned to the jacket. It seemed rather large on Frank. He then noticed the red light behind Frank along with several other scattered around the hallway.

"Detective!" Fenton whispered. Norris looked over at him. "We're being filmed! Something is wrong!"

Detective Norris looked around at the cameras, noticing them for the first time. He realized too late what it meant. It was all staged!

"Get back!" he yelled down the hall. The true reason why Frank wore a large jacket became apparent when he pulled out two guns strapped to a hidden holster. Frank leveled them at each officer, shooting them, one by one in either the arm, leg, or chest. Not one person was able to get a shot off at him before he shot them. He knocked one out with an elbow to the face when the man tried to grab him from behind.

Detective Norris started yelling into the radio for backup and got up to face Frank. He was able to shoot a rubber bullet at him only for it to hit Frank's shoulder. It stop him for a moment but he eventually reeled around to face Norris, gun raised. As Amelia huddled behind the table, Fenton stepped in between the two men, causing Frank to stop.

"Frank," Fenton said. "This isn't you. Stop this madness."

Fenton looked at his face. He thought he saw a moment of recognition even though it was short. Frank's eye twitched just a bit, the gun wavering just slightly. He slowly stepped forward, his hand reaching out to take the gun. Frank blinked a few times as if trying to see and shut them one time before opening them again. Fenton saw the blankness take over once again and before he was able to reach for his son, a shot rang out as Frank pulled the trigger.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty

Carson, Hannah, and Laura waited in the Van along with Chief McGinnis, not knowing what was going on at the house. The radio remained silent for almost an hour until the teams began talking once again. McGinnis rose up quickly to be closer to the dispatcher while the others waited with bated breath.

" _Lower level clear_ ," came a clear voice over the radio. The voice didn't sound familiar to anyone so they assumed it was someone from Chicago. Suddenly a more frantic call came over the line, this time sounding like Detective Norris.

 _"Second floor, we need help! Now!"_ As he talked, gunfire could be heard behind him. Laura let out a cry, putting her hand over her mouth. Hannah leaned over and comforted her while Carson sat stone faced.

The dispatcher looked up at McGinnis, waiting for her orders. McGinnis walked outside and started yelling to those around the Van. Men and women in uniform hurried to their cars and waited for the Van pull out. He pounded on the wall separating the driver from the back and ordered him to drive to the house. McGinnis then looked to the dispatcher.

"Call in the paramedics, ASAP," McGinnis ordered.

"How many, Chief?" she asked.

"I don't care how many just get them here fast."

The dispatcher nodded and began relaying the request into her headset. The Van soon got moving with sirens from the police cars blaring around them. They arrived only ten minutes later to find several officers waiting for them in front of the house. McGinnis walked to the nearest officer he could find. Laura, Carson, and Hannah rushed out behind the Chief, with Laura searching the people around her for her husband and son.

"Give me the 411," McGinnis ordered an officer nearby.

"Well, sir," he replied. "When we arrived at the house, there were a few men who holed up in the foyer but we were able to subdue them along with a few others we found throughout the lower level. Lt. Mitchell ordered me and part of the team to remain downstairs and search while she took the rest of them upstairs to second floor. The teams upstairs remained silent until about ten minutes ago when Detective Norris called for help. Mitchell's team hasn't checked in yet."

The officer stopped when the radio squawked in his ear. He listened intently with McGinnis standing nearby. Sirens approached them as numerous ambulances pulled up with more coming in the distance.

"My god," the officer replied, looking at McGinnis in shock.

"What?" the Chief yelled. The officer looked to Carson, Hannah, and Laura nearby and pulled the Chief away from them. He began talking in low tones to McGinnis who closed his eyes as he listened. The Chief nodded and gave him orders pointing to the paramedics standing by. Looking back at the three of them, McGinnis slowly walked back, rubbing his neck nervously.

"What? What is it?" Carson asked. Laura watched the Chief, her eyes filling with tears.

"Um, we…we have word that several people are down," McGinnis replied slowly. He looked at Laura sympathetically but he didn't need to say anything. She already knew and broke down in tears, crying into Hannah's shoulder. "We don't know how bad it is just yet though. We still haven't heard from Lt. Mitchell's team yet either. Joe was with her."

The group walked slowly into the house, officers and paramedics rushing about taking care of those who were injured downstairs. The staircase leading to the second floor was empty so they all moved their way up. As they were on the staircase, Laura cried out when she saw a familiar face slowly walking across the hall in front of them.

* * *

Dr. Cox clapped loudly in the small room, applauding what he just witnessed. Maddox stood with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. James sat in the corner, aghast and not saying anything. He wanted to kill Dr. Cox but knew he wouldn't be able to with Maddox standing nearby.

"Wasn't that wonderful?" Dr. Cox asked, still clapping and looking down at James. "Couldn't have asked for a better performance by them!"

The phone nearby rang and the doctor picked up, still smiling. The person on the other line spoke excitedly but James couldn't make out the words.

"Yes! It was a fantastic show, wasn't it?" the doctor replied, elated. "I'm so glad you approve! ...Yes, yes, yes. We'll be on the first plane we find…Oh! You have one ready for us?... Excellent! Let them know we will be there within the hour! And what of the remainder of the payment? … Stupendous! We will see you soon!"

Dr. Cox hung up the phone and clapped his hands once more. Taking one last look at the screens, giving a squeal of delight and turned them all off. As he walked to the door, the doctor grabbed a steel briefcase and looked down at James, smirking.

"As you heard, we will be leaving shortly but I'm sorry to say James, you won't be with us for long on this part of the voyage," he sneered. "I think I may let you get close to her one last time before I have her kick you out the window. How does that sound?"

Maddox laughed and picked up James by the collar, dragging him along the floor and down the hall. The doctor walked with a spring in his step into a large, underground hangar where the helicopter stood by. Three people were waiting near the machine and as the doctor and his entourage approached, James could see that two of them were Nancy and Frank. They stood side by side staring at nothing as if waiting for orders. Maddox dropped James to the floor in front of the others.

"What's wrong with them?" James asked. He noticed Nancy's lip was bleeding from the fight but it didn't seem to bother her.

"Nothing," Dr. Cox replied, walking over to them. He pulled out a handkerchief and gently wiped Nancy's lip. She didn't even flinch as he touched her. "They are perfect in every way. They follow their orders to a 'T' and do it without hesitation. Unlike some people I know."

"But how are you keeping control?" James asked

"That's the easy part, my boy," Cox replied. "I have a word for each one of them that virtually turns them on and off. They follow every direction given, like I said."

"What's the word?"

"Tsk tsk tsk. Do you honestly think I would tell you that?" Dr. Cox looked at each one of his "patients" and smiled. "The hard part was getting it done in the first place. Believe me, it was more painful for them than it was for me but it was done. It took days for Nancy because I had to keep her from sleeping and eating in order to make her more susceptible to the manipulation. Plus lots of drugs too. As for Mr. Hardy, he was slightly easier thanks to Maddox. His mind was already jumbled up from the hit on his head but his training was virtually nonstop beginning just a few hours after he arrived here. I was worried that the time frame for him was not long enough but obviously it still worked and he did what he was told."

"Why? Why do this to them?"

"Now, we've been over this before, James," Dr. Cox rolled his eyes. "But I guess I could reiterate it for you. You know why with Nancy. She was something I needed to end. As for him, he was a choice I made. The people who hired me wanted either him or his brother but I'm not sure why. I'm sure they have their reasons."

"You're mad."

"Yup and I love it. Now, let's get moving before the police find this place."

James suddenly elbowed Maddox in the gut and rushed off toward a darker part of the hangar. Maddox roared with rage and was about to chase James before the doctor stopped him.

"Leave him to me," he said walking over to Frank. He whispered into his ear and Frank walked off to find James. Dr. Cox smiled. "Just watch."

Although they couldn't see what was going on, they heard several crashes and eventually a gunshot rang out. Frank walked back with no James and stopped a few feet away, waiting for his next order.

"Impressive," Maddox said. He walked around to Nancy and smelled her hair. The doctor took no notice to this action since he was looking away. "But why didn't you use her when you told him you would?"

"Too cliché," Dr. Cox shrugged. He beckoned them to follow him to the helicopter. "I wanted to change it up and send someone James wouldn't expect. Ready? I want to check my bank account before we take off."

* * *

"Hardy! You all right?" yelled Lt. Mitchell. She stood over Joe slumped on the ground on top of what was left of a table. Another officer was tending to him, trying to get him awake. Joe groaned loudly when he shifted, grabbing his broken ribs.

"What happened?" he asked, looking up at Mitchell. She looked livid with a black eye and bloody nose.

"You tell me! She's your friend!" Mitchell cried, holding a tissue to her nose.

"Nancy! Where'd she go?" Joe asked. He tried to get up but pain shot through him and he plopped back down with a grunt.

"I don't know where she went!" Mitchell spat. The other officer held his hand out to help Joe up. "Nor do I care! Now, let's get out of here! Our radios were busted when she attacked us so we have to go get help ourselves. Now move!"

"Okay, okay," Joe grumbled. He slowly followed her and the rest of the team who could walk. The officers seemed to have a few broken bones along with some crushed egos as they wandered back to the front staircase.

"Joe!" cried a voice as he walked across the hall. He looked down to see his mother rushing up to him with Carson, Hannah, and McGinnis in tow. Laura grabbed a hold of him and gave him a bone crushing hug. He yelped loudly causing her to back off a bit, tears in her eyes. "Oh, my poor baby!"

"Mom, I'm fine!" Joe cried as she tried to help him. Some of the others around them laughed at the scene though Lt. Mitchell sulked away. "Where's Dad?"

"We were just coming up to find you two," Carson replied. "We're not sure where they are. Did you see Nancy or Frank?"

"Yeah, Nancy," Joe cringed, almost doubling over. "Who do you think did this?"

"Nancy did this?" Carson said, shocked. "My Nancy? Why on earth would she hurt you, of all people?"

"I don't know," Joe said. "But she didn't seem herself and I have the boot print to prove it."

"Did you see Frank too?" Laura asked, hopefully. Joe just shook his head.

Paramedics were rushing past them down a hall they hadn't been to yet. The group followed with Laura helping Joe along the way. Carson was worried to hear that Nancy had beaten up a few of the officers along with one of her best friends but he still didn't believe she did it. After a few minutes of walking through the endless hallways and rooms, they finally came across Norris' team. They were stunned to see the scene before them, taking in everything.

Debris and glass were scattered everywhere, along with officers lying on the floor who were being helped by the paramedics. At the far end of the hall, several men were zip-tied and ready to be processed. Tables were overturned with bullet holes riddled through them. Norris knelt next to someone lying in the middle of the hallway with a woman who was pressing down on the person's head. When the woman backed away, Laura gave out a yelp and rushed over when she saw who was on the floor. Joe's heart dropped when he saw his father lying on the ground as if he were dead.


	31. Chapter 31

**Author's Note:**

 **Again, thank you so much for the comments! I'm glad you are enjoying this story! Now, on with it! Don't forget to review!**

Chapter Thirty-One

Maddox watched Frank walk away to find James. He was skeptical about the man still being under the doctor's control especially after seeing him hesitate on the video. Since he couldn't see what was going on in the shadows of the hangar, Maddox's intuition that Frank was faking increased even though the doctor kept expressing that there was no way. When Frank walked out of the shadows without James, Maddox's eyes narrowed. He slowly walked over to Nancy, keeping his eyes on Frank for a reaction and bent over and sniffed her hair nonchalantly. When no reaction came from Frank, not even a flinch, Maddox seemed to feel a sense of relief but vowed to keep tabs on the other man.

Several minutes later, the ceiling opened up and the helicopter started to rise on the platform. Maddox sat near the closed door but he really wanted Nancy to sit next to him. The doctor insisted that she be with him so he was stuck with Frank sitting nearby. As the helicopter rose higher, Maddox's skepticism tapered off though he could have sworn he saw Frank twiddle his thumb as if trying to wait it out.

* * *

Laura rushed over to her husband on the ground and tried to shake him awake. Amelia was trying to cover an open wound on the side of his head to stop the bleeding. When she lifted the bandage, Laura gasped at seeing a large gash to the side of his temple.

"What happened?" she cried, looking over at Norris.

Amelia and the detective shared a look but didn't say anything. Joe maneuvered his way in to help though he kept clutching his middle in pain. A paramedic came over to inspect him though he kept his eye on his father. When Joe saw the wound, he knew it wasn't from someone hitting him on the head. It looked almost like a graze from a bullet.

"Detective Norris," Joe asked more determined, "tell us what happened."

"You really want to know?" Norris asked looking at him sternly.

"Yes, Max," McGinnis stepped forward. "I think we need to know what went on here and why this place looks worse than the OK Corral."

Norris was about to say something when Fenton gasped loudly and opened his eyes. Laura cried out and hugged him tightly, tears flowing freely.

"Did that really just happen?" Fenton asked, looking at Norris and Amelia. They both nodded their heads sadly.

"Did what just happen?" Joe asked. He pushed the paramedic away for a moment. "Will someone tell us what is going on?!"

"Frank did this," Norris replied, looking at him. Joe took a step back, stunned.

"No!" cried Laura. "He wouldn't!"

"I would say the same thing, Mrs. Hardy," Norris replied looking over at her, "if I didn't see it with my own eyes."

"He's telling the truth, Laura," Fenton said from the floor. He tried to raise himself but Amelia pushed him back down and dabbed the gauze to his wound. "He stood right here and pulled the trigger. I thought I was dead!"

"First Nancy, now Frank," replied McGinnis. "What in god's name is going on here?"

"He's made the perfect weapon," Amelia said. Fenton watched her as she finished applying a bandage a paramedic gave her to his temple.

"What do you mean by that?" he asked.

"Leonard has been trying to do it for over twenty years," Amelia stated, holding out her hand to help him up. "A walking, talking machine to control that no one would suspect. Look at Nancy. She's an average, every day, pretty girl who could walk into a building to take out one person and blend in on the way out. No one would suspect her whatsoever because of the way she looked. Someone paid him a lot of money to finish his research and it looks like he succeeded."

"So, you're saying he's controlling them both?" asked Norris. "But how?"

"That's the million dollar question," Amelia replied. "I didn't see what his new tactics were but it's very different from the last time."

McGinnis and Norris shared a dark look.

"Then why didn't he do the same to me?" asked McGinnis. "He had the opportunity."

"I'm guessing you weren't the type of person he needed," Amelia answered. "You may be strong but you're much older than them. Whoever hired him wanted young and smart."

"So, why specifically Nancy and Frank?" asked Joe. "Why not anyone else around?"

"He took Nancy to settle a score with me," Carson answered. "He wanted to finish what he started when Kate died."

"Since Nancy didn't die in the car accident," McGinnis continued, "he thought it would be a good way to end your feud by doing this to her."

"Okay, but that doesn't explain Frank," replied Fenton. "Why would he take him?"

"Maybe it has something to do with money," replied Joe. He winced as the paramedic helped him take off the tactical gear. "If, as you say, the doctor was hired by someone, they may have chosen who they wanted. Think about it. There are so many people out there who would love to see one of us under their control."

"Sorry to say this, Joe," Fenton replied, "but Cosgrove took the stronger of the two of you. He knew it too."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Dad," muttered Joe. He took off his shirt as the paramedic began wrapping his middle to protect his ribs. A bruise was growing in the middle of his chest where Nancy kicked him.

"No, I don't mean anything by it, Joe," Fenton apologized. He placed his hand on Joe's shoulder. "You have to admit it though, Frank is the thinker between the two of you. He would have been more of a challenge to turn but I'm assuming the concussion Frank received would have helped Cosgrove."

"Okay, but why didn't he keep Frank when we were in River Heights?" asked Norris.

"Maybe the people who hired him didn't know you two were in town," Amelia suggested. "When they found out, that's when Leo ordered Maddox to take Frank."

"But if Cosgrove wanted to make a perfect weapon," Joe asked, "why aren't there more of us dead? Look around here. Frank shot up the place and maybe hurt more people than he killed, including you, Dad."

"You're right," Fenton replied. "When I stepped in front of Detective Norris, Frank flinched. I saw a moment of clarity in his eyes, but when he closed and opened them again, he took a shot. Someone was watching and I would make a bet that they were talking to him the whole time."

"Yes," Norris agreed. "But he still took a shot."

"And missed. I was right in front of him so he had a prime target," Fenton stated. "There was no way he could have missed. Frank's not the greatest aim but at that distance, I should be dead."

"I'm not so sure," Amelia piped up. "They might have just been ordered not to kill. But then again, the last time I saw Nancy she looked horrible and was trying to fight it."

"But the only thing is, when I saw her," Joe said, "there was no recognition. Nothing. She aimed right for me after going after each of the police officers. How does that come in to your theory?"

"Did anyone die?" Fenton asked.

"No, but they each had a broken bone at most except maybe one. She flipped him around like he was nothing. I even thought she was going to go all Black Widow on me, too!"

"Who?" Fenton asked.

"Man, Dad, don't you read comics?" Joe rolled his eyes. He pulled his shirt back on gingerly and a jacket.

"What I'm saying is there may be hope," Fenton said, ignoring Joe. "Maybe they're still fighting whatever the doctor did to them."

"Chief!" cried an officer nearby. The group looked at woman who spoke. "We have word that the ground out back is opening up!"

"Say what, now?" cried McGinnis rushing to the nearest window facing the partially frozen lake. The others followed with Laura walking slowly with Fenton and Joe. Sure enough, the ground seemed to be sliding open revealing a helicopter that was rising up.

"Not again!" cried McGinnis. "Is there a way down there?"

"Travers!" cried Norris. The officer was sitting across the hall, nursing a gunshot wound to the leg raised his voice to get the detective's attention. "Where's the back staircase to get downstairs?"

Pointing down the hall, Travers explained where the stairs were but remained on the floor so the paramedic could take care of him. Norris and McGinnis led the way while everyone who could move, rushed as fast as they could downstairs. The staircase ended right outside the kitchen and back patio with a full view of the lake and grounds. The thumping of the rotor blades got louder as the helicopter gained momentum to lift off. By the time they were all outside, the helicopter was well off the ground. A police chopper came over the house, a speaker blaring loudly.

 _"This is the Chicago Police. Return to the ground immediately."_

The police on the ground watched helplessly as the doctor's helicopter rose high above the ground, ignoring the orders from the police chopper. When the helicopter was flying away, the door flew open and a man leaned out with a large rifle. He started shooting at the police chopper, his laugh heard distinctly on the wind.

"Who is it?" asked Hannah. They were all watching from the back patio of the house. Norris got a set of binoculars from a nearby officer. Putting them to his eyes, he took a few seconds to focus on the doctor's helicopter.

"Looks like Maddox," he said. "I can't see anyone else from this angle. I need to move to see better."

Norris rushed down the stairs of the patio onto the grounds, everyone following behind him. By the time he found a good place to raise the binoculars again, the police chopper was going down slowly. Maddox had shot out part of the engine with his rifle. It landed roughly on the ground moments later. The laughter they heard earlier soon turned to a scream of terror, rippling through the area. Norris raised his binoculars again to see Maddox falling from the helicopter, landing next to the lake with a thump.

"What just happened?" asked Joe. Laura and Hannah both squealed as Maddox's body hit the ground.

"Somehow, Maddox fell out of the helicopter," Norris replied, still looking at the helicopter through the binoculars. "Even at this angle, I still can't see into the cabin very well but I could have sworn I saw Frank."

"Let me see," Fenton requested. Norris gave the binoculars to him and Fenton raised them to his eyes. He couldn't see into the helicopter as it was over a mile away. It suddenly made a sharp turn, heading back to the house.

"Why are they coming back?" asked Joe.

Suddenly a shot rang out and the helicopter bucked and dipped slightly only to pull back up again to hover high over the lake. Shots came again from the cabin and smoke began to rise from the main rotor. The helicopter rocked and swayed as the engine sputtered. It soon started to free fall quickly, the rotor completely destroyed and the engine giving out. A body flew out of the cabin as it twisted in air and smacked into the lake, immediately disappearing into the depths. All of the police, Hardys, Carson, Amelia, and Hannah watched helplessly as the helicopter finally hit the lake, sinking slightly. Moments later, fire ignited and what was left of the crash blew up in front of them.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter Thirty-Two

The moment the helicopter exploded, Laura burst into tears, screaming for her son. Fenton tried to console her but had trouble keeping her away from the lake. Joe stared at the wreckage, disbelieving that his brother was gone. Carson knelt on the ground, his arms wrapped around Hannah and both of them crying. The police moved quickly around to see what they could do to find survivors, if any.

"Get the fire department!" yelled Chief McGinnis. An officer nearby radioed for help while some watched the fire on the lake.

Detective Norris ordered a few officers to go around the other side of the lake while he searched their side to see if anybody came up. Sirens were heard all around as he surveyed the edge of the lake. Although he was trying to be optimistic, Norris felt that no one could have survived the crash let alone the explosion. He stopped near some reeds and dead plants and looked out onto the lake at the crash, thinking of what could have been.

* * *

Frank stood next to Nancy, waiting for the doctor. He watched as Maddox dragged James across the floor, dropping him as he stopped. Frank was fighting his programming ever since he saw his father step in front of the other man in the hallway upstairs. The moment Fenton was in his sights, Frank could hear Dr. Cox screaming in his ear to pull the trigger. He flinched, thinking about it but eventually had to do it as the doctor screamed a word again. Shifting his hand just enough that no one would have noticed, Frank pulled the trigger and the nightmare continued. He stood waiting for the doctor to order him to shoot the officer but Cox ordered him back, leaving the man to care for his father. The struggle inside his mind continued when he saw Nancy standing in the hangar.

Listening to their conversation, the doctor spilled his guts to James. When James caught Maddox off guard and ran off, the doctor went to him instead of Nancy to go after the man. Frank knew it was his moment to snap out of it though for some reason he couldn't seem to control his body as he moved. Finding where James was proved to be harder for Frank than he realized as it was completely dark in that part of the hangar. When James whacked Frank in the back of the head with a beam, it was like a light bulb going off in his head. He shook his head and looked around, realizing what happened. James was now in front of him, about to hit him again when Frank held his hand up to stop him.

"Don't do it," he whispered loud enough for James to hear. The man dropped the beam, making a loud clatter.

"You're awake?" James asked quietly. "How?"

"I…I don't know," Frank said. "I've been fighting it for a while but when you hit me, I was finally able to snap out of it. You have to get out of here."

"Shoot," James said, egging him on.

"What?"

"Shoot! If you don't, he'll send her and I don't think she's as lucid as you are."

Frank pulled out one of the guns strapped to his back, aimed it at the wall and pulled the trigger, the distinct sound ringing in his ears. He knew James was right but he had to get back so he could end this. Giving his best solemn face, Frank walked slowly out of the shadows, fully in control. He watched as Maddox went behind Nancy and sniffed her hair. Frank did his best to control his anger but seeing the gesture only infuriated him more. Keeping his eyes as straight forward as he could, he followed the doctor, Nancy, and Maddox onto the helicopter and waited for it to depart. Frank sat as close to Maddox as he could and kept his seat belt loose, making sure not to rouse suspicion from him or the doctor. Nancy sat across from him, her eyes staring down, never flinching. He worried that he wouldn't be able to help her let alone himself. Maddox closed the cabin door as the platform rose, the helicopter's rotors and engine starting up slowly.

"Fantastic!" cried Dr. Cox. He was looking at his tablet, smiling broadly. "The money is right where it should be! Maddox, how much do you want? Because I have lots of it! Ha!"

Maddox laughed as the helicopter took off. Frank twiddled a thumb nervously, waiting for the right moment to strike. They soon heard the sound of the police chopper trying to urge them back down. Dr. Cox placed the tablet inside his steel briefcase and put it at his feet, inside a secure netting and looked out the far window to see the chopper.

"I don't think so," laughed the doctor. "Maddox, would you do the honors of taking care of them?"

"My pleasure," Maddox smiled, pulling his rifle out of its case on the floor. He unhooked his seat belt and opened the door, wind whipping around the cabin.

Although he kept his eyes forward, Frank knew his time was coming. He watched Nancy's hair whip around her face though she never once lifted her hand to brush it off. Maddox switched seats, sitting directly next to Frank to get a better shot at the police chopper. He started laughing maniacally when the chopper began to go down, a little bit of smoke rising from its tail. Maddox stopped shooting but continued to laugh until the moment Frank grabbed a hold of him and shoved the man out the door. His scream could be heard all the way down until it stopped abruptly.

"What are you doing?" Dr. Cox screamed, his eyes wide with shock.

"What I should have done a long time ago," cried Frank, looking back at the doctor. The man's eyes widened when he saw that Frank was fully in control. Frank shoved his fist hard into the doctor's Adam's apple, stopping his ability to talk. Dr. Cox leaned over, trying to speak though only gurgling came out. Nancy remained seated as if she didn't care. Frank rose and walked to the cockpit, gun in hand.

"Turn us around!" he cried at the pilot, pressing the gun into his neck. The man did as he was told, taking a sharp turn to come back around to the house. Frank was momentarily distracted when he noticed who the co-pilot was. James stared back at him, shaking his head to warn him not say a word. In that moment, Frank's shoulder erupted in fire as a bullet ripped through him and into the pilot. With the pilot now dead, the helicopter bucked briefly until James was able to level it out to hover above the lake.

Frank turned around to see the doctor aiming a gun at him though he couldn't say a word. Dr. Cox didn't need to say anything for Frank saw in the man's eyes that he was furious and wasn't willing to sacrifice anything to keep his money. Frank lunged at the man, having dropped his own gun when he turned around. The two fought over it, the doctor trying not to injure Frank any more than he had to. But as the two had the gun over their heads, it went off, the bullet hitting the main rotor. The helicopter again bucked and wheezed, knocking Frank to the floor of the cabin. Dr. Cox raised his gun, aiming it at him with nothing but words softly coming out of his mouth that Frank couldn't hear or understand over the wind. He knew the doctor had every intention at that moment to kill him even with the consequences and he waited for the shots to come. Frank heard them but didn't feel anything. He looked up just as the doctor fell over onto the floor, two bloody wounds in his back. Nancy stood over him with Frank's gun still smoking in her hand, trembling. As Frank rose, he caught her when she dropped the gun and broke down in tears, sobbing uncontrollably.

"I can't hold it much longer!" cried James from the co-pilot's seat. The helicopter was wobbling back and forth, with Frank and Nancy trying to hold on for dear life. When the engine stalled and the free fall began, they held each other tightly, tumbling inside the cabin as it fell. Dr. Cox's body flew out the open door just before they hit the water. Although she wasn't knocked out, Nancy's head hit the wall, her temple opening up instantly. Water instantly filled the cabin and Frank and Nancy were thrown under. They were able to come up for air just long enough for him to come up with a plan. The helicopter began to sink though, not giving them a lot of time to think.

"You have to trust me, Nancy," Frank said slowly, the cold getting to him.

"I do." Nancy nodded, her teeth chattering.

"We'll be fine," Frank said. He held her head in his hands to reassure her though he could see the terror in her eyes. "Trust me. Take a deep breath and don't let go."

The pair took a deep breath and dived into the water, Nancy never letting go of his hand. They were down below the helicopter the moment it exploded, rocking them slightly. Frank kept looking up to find an opening to breathe but it was nothing but ice and flame at the surface. They swam hand in hand for what seemed like hours until Nancy slowed. Frank saw she was about to pass out from lack of oxygen when he kissed her underwater, both of them breathing for each other. With the renewed sense of energy, they were able to swim further, searching for a way out. Nancy saw daylight ahead of them, breaking the darkness of the water and motioned Frank to go in the direction of the light. Coming closer to the area, he noticed reeds and dead plants lining the bottom and Frank realized it was the edge of the lake they were heading toward. Grabbing a hold of the reeds above the water, Frank pulled himself out, taking in a gasping breath. As best he could with his injured shoulder, he pulled Nancy out of the water, pain ripping through him. She began coughing and gasping for air the moment her head broke the water line. The two lay side by side, looking at each other for a second, still holding hands. They were too tired to let go and were slightly awake when a voice was heard nearby.

* * *

Norris stopped at the reeds, staring at the wreckage. He was about to walk away when he heard gasping and coughing coming from the lake in front of him. He pulled out his gun, not knowing if it would be friend or foe and pushed the reeds aside. His eyes widened when he found Nancy and Frank lying on the ground, hand in hand, still coughing from being in the water.

"Hey!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. Norris waved his arms frantically to get everyone's attention. "Over here!"

He bent down and grabbed a hold of Frank's jacket, pulling him the rest of the way out of the water. Frank screamed loudly as Norris inadvertently grabbed a hold of his injured shoulder. Letting go of Nancy, Frank passed out from the pain in his shoulder. Norris was just turning him over when Chief McGinnis ran up and pulled Nancy up the embankment. The Chief turned back to the others and yelled for the paramedics. Bending down, he checked Nancy's pulse and found her slow heartbeat. She coughed, water spilling out of her mouth, her eyes rolling lazily.

"Nancy!" cried Carson, bending down.

"She's alive," McGinnis stated. Carson picked up his daughter and held her tight. As she stared at him for just a moment, he saw her clear blue eyes for the first time in days and smiled. Nancy didn't say anything before she passed out.

"Oh, no no no! Come on, baby!" Carson cried, shaking her. "Come back!" He saw blood coming from a wound on her temple and eased her gently down so the paramedics could take care of her. They covered Nancy up with a blanket, trying their best to warm her. Carson leaned back, watching them take care of his only child, tears flowing.

"He was just awake, Mr. Hardy," Norris stated Fenton, as he came around to the other side of his son. Fenton breathed a sigh of relief as the detective noticed the blood on his hands. The two looked at each other and immediately began checking for wounds on Frank. Opening up his jacket, they found the shoulder wound bleeding freely and began applying pressure to it. The paramedics took over, pushing aside Fenton though the man didn't leave his son's side.

Joe couldn't do anything but watch his father and the paramedics take care of his brother. His mother was a good distance away with Hannah as the two women comforted each other, afraid to come any closer to hear bad news. Joe looked over at the wreckage still burning on the lake and wondered how Frank and Nancy survived. He then realized he didn't care how just the fact that they were alive and were going to be okay.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter Thirty-Three

Snow had finally moved into the city, coating it with white wonder. It was a day and a half after the raiding of the house and helicopter crash and Nancy was asleep in her hospital room, alone. Carson and Hannah were staying at a nearby hotel along with the Hardys, waiting for her and Frank to awaken. In the middle of the night, someone walked off the elevator onto their floor, an overnight bag under his arm. The nurses' station lay empty ahead of him as he checked the first room to see Frank in his bed and walked to the room next door where Nancy slept. He closed the door quietly and stood watching her sleep peacefully. He walked over to her and sat down in the chair next to the bed, noticing her wrist handcuffed to the bed rail. A bandage was over her temple and her lip was still healing but no other injuries could be seen physically. The man sadly looked at her and leaned over, kissing her forehead. When he pulled back, Nancy stared right at him, her blue eyes focused on his face.

"James?" she said softly. "What…what are you doing here?"

"Shhh," James put his finger to his lips. "I just wanted to see you one more time before I left. And to give you something."

"How did you…?"

"I jumped from the helicopter right after it crashed," James said quietly. "No one knew I was there except for Frank so I was able to go hide in the trees until it was safe. It was cold but I'm fine."

"All the things you did," Nancy said quickly, her voice cracking. "Why? Why did you put me through this?"

"I'm so sorry, Nancy," he said, apologetically. "I never meant for you to be hurt the way you were. I thought I was protecting you but it only served to hurt you more."

"I don't want your sympathy," she said, suddenly angrily. "I want you out of here!"

"Okay," James replied, his face upset from her outburst. He placed the bag underneath her bed. "I'll just leave this here and you can get it later."

"I don't care what you have to give me! GET OUT!" she screamed, tears running down her face. She tried to rise from the bed but was stopped by the handcuff. Nancy started crying hysterically, struggling with the handcuff as he left. She was confused as to why it was there and continued screaming and crying as the doctor and nurses on duty came in to calm her down. None of them saw James leave the room, heartbroken by what he had done. He hoped that what he left behind would help her and Frank get the answers they needed. James left the hospital, disappearing into the night.

* * *

Carson, Hannah, and the Hardys arrived at the hospital together early the next morning in the hopes that the day would be when Nancy and Frank finally woke up. When they stepped off the elevator, a doctor was waiting outside Nancy's door and Carson instantly thought something was wrong. Before entering Frank's room, the Hardys stayed behind to hear what the doctor had to say.

"Is everything okay?" Carson asked as he approached the closed door.

"I need to speak with you, Mr. Drew," the doctor said.

"Anything you say can be said in front of them," Carson replied, after the doctor tried to pull him aside to speak privately. "They're practically family, so speak."

"I'm sorry to say this but," the doctor said, warily, "Your daughter woke up in the middle of the night."

"Why are you sorry?" Hannah said, smiling. "Wouldn't that be wonderful news?"

"Is she okay?" asked Carson.

"No," the doctor said, shaking his head. "She was screaming and becoming hysterical. She practically broke the bed rail in the process. We had to sedate her to calm her down and she's been asleep ever since. It may be hours before she wakes up again though we're not sure how she'll react this time."

"Was there something that may have triggered it?" Carson asked, hopeful that maybe they could avoid it.

"I don't think so," the doctor answered. "One of the nurses did say that it sounded like she was screaming at someone to get out but when we got into the room, no one was there."

Carson stood silent for a moment then walked over to Nancy's room and opened the door. Nothing looked out of the ordinary, as she laid there sleeping. The conversation behind him continued though he didn't pay any attention and soon closed the door behind him to be alone with his daughter.

"Excuse me but will this happen to Frank when he wakes up?" asked Laura.

"We're not sure, Mrs. Hardy," he said, apologetically. "We have to wait and see what happens when he does. We'll keep an eye on both of them and see what we can do. Now, I must be going. If you have any questions or concerns, a nurse at the desk will be able to assist you."

"Thank you," replied Fenton. Hannah excused herself and went into Nancy's room to be with Carson.

The Hardys went into Frank's room to find him still asleep, oblivious to what was going on around him. His left arm was in a sling from the through-and-through he received in the shoulder while his right arm was handcuffed to the bed rail, like Nancy was. He looked peaceful but his family still worried if he would wake up in the same manner as her. Laura opened the blinds, revealing the lightly falling snow and the white grounds of the hospital. She wanted to bring light into the room just in case Frank woke up so it wouldn't be so drab. Sitting down in the chair next to the bed, she got out a book and began reading. Fenton and Joe sat in the other seats in the room with Joe pulling out his phone and Fenton reading a book as well.

A few hours passed and knock came at the door. Detective Norris poked his head in and motioned for Fenton and Joe to come out, while Laura stayed behind, trying to keep her eyes open. She sat thinking of the events on the previous days, about being worried sick for her older son. When the helicopter exploded, Laura thought she lost Frank for good. Even after Detective Norris found them coming out of the lake almost drowned, she didn't want to get any closer than she should for fear of losing him again.

Laura just closed her eyes when she heard a noise in the room. She looked at Frank but he didn't move and attributed it to the noises from the hallway since the door was partially open. Laura was about to settle back down when she saw Frank move his head, though his eyes remained closed. As she stood up, hopeful, his good arm moved though it didn't get far due to the handcuff. It was the same sound she heard before, sort of a soft clink. Frank seemed to be dreaming as he tried to snap out of whatever the dream was about. She was about to get Fenton when she heard him mumble. Looking down at him again, his eyes were open staring at her, confused.

"Mom?" he whispered. "What are you doing here?"

Laura smiled, tears welling in her eyes and began kissing her son. She noticed he didn't return the smile like he usually would.

"Wait here," Laura said happily, passing off his reaction. She rushed out the door before he had a chance to say anything else.

"Like I'm going anywhere," Frank muttered sadly. He looked around the room and felt a sudden pain in his shoulder. He tried to comfort his pain with the other hand but noticed the handcuff and plopped it back down on his lap. Frank was staring out the window when Fenton and Joe rushed back into the room with Laura.

"Frank?" said Fenton, smiling as he walked up to the bed. Frank turned his head toward his dad. "Oh, thank god, you're awake! How are you feeling?"

Frank didn't say anything, his eyes settling on the bandage on the side of Fenton's head. Guilt rippled through him and he turned away unexpectedly. Fenton and Laura exchanged looks, not knowing how to react.

"Hey, Frank!" Joe butted in, noticing the awkward silence between everyone. Frank settled on Joe and noticed his brother's beat up face.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"Oh, remember when I said I never wanted to be on Nancy's bad side?" Joe laughed, trying to lighten the mood. "This is what happens."

"Where is Nancy?" asked Frank from the bed.

"She's fine, dear, and woke up not too long ago too," Laura lied, patting his arm. "In fact, she's right next door. You'll see her soon enough. Is there anything we can do for you?"

"No," he said flatly. Frank didn't look at any of his family and almost seemed to ignore them. "Just leave me alone."

The three stood shocked by his request. Laura looked like she was about to cry but she kept her composure.

"Oh, okay, sweetheart," Laura replied. She kissed him on the forehead and left the room, her face screwing up to cry. Fenton followed her, not saying a word while Joe stayed behind, his face angry.

"What did you do that for?" Joe asked loudly. Frank gave him a look reminiscent of the same look Nancy gave him at the house, sending shivers down Joe's spine. He soon regained his angry stance. "Do you have any idea the hell we've been through to get you back?"

"Excuse me?" Frank yelled suddenly. "You don't know what hell is, Joe! I know because I just went through it in the past week so don't give me that bull about what you've all been through! Now, if you don't know what's good for you, get out and leave me alone!"

"Fine, Frank!" Joe threw arms up. "Be alone! I'm not going to try to sugar coat your sucky attitude, just don't take it out on Mom!"

With that Joe, stormed out of the room and slammed the door. Frank looked out the window at the falling snow without really seeing it. He wanted nothing more than to get out of there and disappear for a while. Looking down at his arm cuffed to the bed, Frank knew it would be an issue since his other arm was completely incapacitated. He sighed and returned to looking out the window with nothing else to do, not hearing the door open and close softly.

"Hello, Frank," replied a voice. He looked over to see an older woman standing nearby, her hands clasped in front of her. "I was wondering if we could chat for a little bit."

"Who are you?" he asked, annoyed. Frank watched the woman come over to his bed and sit down where his mother had been only moments before. "Whoever you are, I'm not really in the mood."

"I figured as much," she answered sweetly. The woman didn't leave so Frank did his best to avoid her gaze. "Was it really that bad that you had to treat your family like that?"

"I don't have to answer to you, lady," he rudely answered. "I just want to be left alone for a while."

"And you will be," she said. "But would it be better if Nancy were here too?"

Frank shifted his gaze to the woman, his face softening a bit. He desperately wanted to see Nancy to make sure she was okay. Frank had a feeling his mother was lying to him about her to protect him but it was not what he wanted. He wanted the truth.

"How is she?"

"She'll be fine, just like you will be," she answered. "Nancy woke up scared last night and they had to sedate her to calm her down."

"I don't want drugs," Frank said quickly and adamantly. He looked at the door as if waiting for a doctor to come in with drugs.

"Don't worry," the woman said calmly. "I'll make sure they don't give you or Nancy any more drugs."

"Who are you?" Frank asked again, much calmer.

"I'm Amelia," she smiled. "I'm here to help. That's if you want it, of course."

"What I want is the circus in my head to end," Frank said, breaking down a little. He got a little frustrated when he tried to raise his hand to his face only to be hindered by the handcuff.

"Here, let me get that for you," she replied. Amelia took out a key and unlocked the cuff. Frank immediately raised his hand to rub his eyes. He gently rubbed his shoulder as well, feeling the bandage underneath his hospital gown. "Is that better?"

"Yes, thank you," Frank said softly. He shifted in the bed a little to get more comfortable. "I can't face my family. Not after what I did."

"I know," Amelia said, putting the handcuff into her purse. "It's going to take time and they'll eventually understand why you acted the way you did. It may take the same amount of time for your and Nancy to be normal again. Now, I'm going to leave you for just a moment. I need to speak with your family."

"Please, don't go," Frank pleaded.

"Don't worry, Frank," Amelia assured him. "I'll be back soon and maybe we can take a walk next door to see Nancy. Would you like that?"

"Yes," Frank said eagerly. "I would."

"Good," she smiled. "Now is there anything I can do for you before I leave?"

"Can I have some water, please?"

"Yes, of course," Amelia smiled, getting up from the chair. She saw a large plastic drinking cup next to his bed and filled it with water from the bathroom. Returning to the bed, Amelia handed it to Frank who immediately began drinking the water. "I'll see you soon."

Amelia closed the door quietly leaving Frank with his water to stare out the window at the snow once more.


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chief McGinnis, Detective Norris, and Dr. Amelia Foster moved off the elevator and onto the hospital floor. It was almost noon when they arrived and neither family was out in the hallway. Knocking on each door, they motioned for Carson, Fenton, and Joe to come out so they could speak with them.

"What's going on?" Carson asked once they were all standing off to the side of the hall.

"We have a problem," Chief McGinnis said gruffly. He had their full attention. "Someone is pressing charges. We don't have much time before our 'friends' from Chicago PD find out one of them woke up and they come here."

"What!?" The three of them began yelling objections. McGinnis held his hand up to quiet them.

"We are working on a way to get them off but it's coming from the mayor's office," McGinnis said. "Apparently he's not happy that his own daughter was assaulted."

"Please tell me this has nothing to do with Lt. Mitchell," Joe groaned. McGinnis gave him a sour look that answered him. "Great. I knew she was going to be a problem."

"Yes, she's the mayor's daughter," Norris continued. "Even if the mayor is corrupt, this may not go away easily."

"But what can we do?" asked Fenton. "Everything they did was under a brainwash. They couldn't control it."

"Well, unfortunately we have no one to corroborate their story," Norris said. "Dr. Cosgrove or Cox was found at the bottom of the lake last night with two bullets in his back."

"Who did that?" asked Fenton.

"We don't know. It was his body that fell out of the helicopter before it crashed," McGinnis stated. "The only other ones who know what went on in that helicopter are Frank and Nancy."

"Have you found James yet?" Carson asked hopefully.

"No," McGinnis shook his head, a grim look on his face. "We have reason to believe he was co-piloting the helicopter since we couldn't find him in the house. The last time he was seen was in the basement by Norris and his team and Amelia. With Maddox gone too, we have no one except maybe Sage and I doubt she could say anything to help them."

"Do we have any idea what happened to Maddox? About how he fell out of the helicopter," asked Fenton.

"Um, I may have a theory on that," Norris said. "Though you may not like it."

The door to Frank's room suddenly flew open with Laura rushing out, smiling broadly.

"He's awake!" she cried. "Come on!"

Laura grabbed a hold of Fenton's hand and pulled him away. Joe rushed behind them into the room. Carson sadly watched them leave and Amelia put her hand on his shoulder.

"This is good news and bad," McGinnis said. "I'm assuming they'll be here in the next few hours. At least ADA Nora Miller is speaking with the district attorney of Chicago about everything. Maybe she can stop it before it gets too far."

"Who did assault Lt. Mitchell anyway?" Carson asked.

"The same one who broke Joe's ribs," McGinnis said sadly looking at Carson. The man nodded his head in understanding and waited for the Hardys to return. Laura suddenly rushed out of the room, sobbing with Fenton coming out behind her, his face upset. They soon heard yelling in the room with Joe coming out and slamming the door. He stormed off down the hall away from everyone without another word.

"What happened?" Amelia said calmly.

"He was so mean," Laura replied in between sobs. "I guess it was just wishful thinking that Frank would be okay."

"He wouldn't even look at me," Fenton said sadly.

"Would you mind if I go talk to him?" asked Amelia. Without the Hardys noticing, she pulled Norris aside and asked him for the key to the handcuffs.

"I'm not sure if that would be wise, doctor," he said looking at her. "You don't know what he might do."

"I know that everything will be okay, detective," Amelia replied. "I just want to see if Frank will trust me."

"Okay," Norris shrugged and gave the key to her. Amelia disappeared into the room, leaving them all in the hallway again.

"What was your theory, Detective Norris?" asked Fenton, remembering the earlier part of their conversation.

"I'm not sure you want to hear it after your experience with Frank just now," Norris stated. "It can wait."

Joe came back down the hall, a soda in his hand. He seemed a little calmer than he was when he left his brother's room. Laura let go of Fenton and gave her younger son a hug. She whispered something in his ear that no one else heard and smiled at him, cupping his face. Their moment was interrupted when the door to Frank's room opened and Amelia came out.

"What's going on, Dr. Foster?" Fenton asked.

"Oh, don't call me that! It's Amelia, please," she tutted. Amelia walked over to Norris and pulled out the handcuffs, dropping them into his hand. The detective gave her a shocked look as she smiled at him. "I told you he would be fine. He's calm now."

"How did you do that?" Fenton asked. "How were you able to get him to calm down?"

"It's different coming from someone you don't know," she said. "I just killed him with kindness which I'm sure you did as well, but you're all family. Frank was more agitated by the handcuffs anyway since he couldn't move his other arm. Plus the fact that he feels extremely guilty about everything he did, especially what he did to you, Fenton. It's why he couldn't look at you."

"But we can see past that," he pleaded. "We're not going to hold a grudge over something he couldn't control."

"I know that and you know that," Amelia said. "But for Frank, he has to cope with it the rest of his life. Understand? What you need is to give him time…and some space."

"You mean you want us to leave?" Laura said, barely getting the words out. She couldn't bear leaving again knowing that her son was awake and needed help.

"I mean this in the nicest way possible," Amelia said, slowly, "but, yes. The same thing goes for you and Hannah, Carson. Nancy will more than likely be the same way."

"What will you have us do?" Carson demanded. "Go out to a movie? Go bowling? I can't. I'm not leaving her."

"I think Amelia's right," Joe said suddenly. His parents and Carson all looked at him, stunned at his response. "We have to give them space. I may be mad for the way Frank treated us but after thinking about it, he does need time to think things through. Maybe when we come back, he'll want to see us again."

"And I can let you all know when Nora arrives with the group from Chicago," McGinnis suggested.

"Go to lunch," Amelia said. "Do a little shopping. Both of them will need clothes, if that helps."

Carson looked to Fenton and Laura who sighed collectively in agreement. He went into Nancy's room to get Hannah, taking one last look at his daughter. She still slept, her delicate features in a mask of calmness. Carson wished for her to open her blue eyes, the twinkle shining at him and her smile beaming. But she just kept sleeping and he whispered to Hannah that they were all leaving. Hannah grabbed her things and took a final look at Nancy before heading out the door with Carson.

As the door clicked shut, Nancy opened her eyes just wide enough for her to see that no one was around. She noticed the flowers sitting on the bedside table. Tears flowed down her cheeks but she didn't make a sound so that no one would hear her. Nancy thought of everything that happened over the course of the previous weeks. She knew she couldn't look at her father the same way or even Hannah. Nancy was afraid she'd hurt them again. She felt lost in the world, not knowing what to do next. Thinking of Frank, Nancy knew she had to see him, even if it was for just a moment. She needed to make sure he was okay after what happened on the helicopter. When Dr. Cox was about to kill Frank, Nancy saw the gun on the floor. She knew she had to stop the doctor from killing him and fought against her programming. It felt to her as if she were watching herself from a distance pick up the gun and aim. When she pulled the trigger twice, Nancy felt more aware of her surroundings than she ever had during her time with the doctor and James. Realizing she just killed a man, Nancy dropped the gun and broke down into Frank's arms, relieved that he was okay.

Lying in her bed, Nancy started crying even more, sobs escaping from her lips. She couldn't close her eyes anymore for she saw the whole thing replay in her mind. Nancy sadly sat in the bed, with nothing to do but remember the events that changed her life forever.

* * *

Amelia waited until everyone left to go to lunch before going to find something for Frank. As she was walking by Nancy's room, she heard the telltale sounds of sobbing coming from the other side of the door. Amelia knew it was time for the two to see each other again, just to see how they react and behave. She knew she was taking a chance on it but figured it wouldn't hurt. Frank was still staring out the window when she entered the room.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

"Ready for what?" he said hastily.

"I'm keeping my promise," Amelia smiled. "Do you want to go visit her now?"

Frank looked at her eagerly as she held up some scrubs for him to change into. A nurse had been in earlier to remove his IV and helped get him a little more comfortable. He took the scrubs and did his best to put them on with one hand though eventually pain shot through his shoulder when he moved it the wrong way. Leaving his hospital gown on and just putting on the pants, Amelia helped him walk to the door stopping so she could check the hallway for anyone. Seeing no one, she slowly guided Frank to Nancy's door and moved into the room.

"I'll be back a little later," Amelia said, standing just inside the room. "You two just talk. Here, you may need this."

She placed a key into his hand and left the room, closing the door behind her. Nancy was on the bed, looking as if she were still asleep though he felt she wasn't for he saw that her face was flushed as if she had been crying. Her hair was down, laying gently on the pillow. He noticed the bandage on her temple and remembered she hit her head on the wall of the cabin when they crashed.

"How long have you been awake?" he asked quietly.

"Long enough to know that I don't want to be around Dad," she said. "Or Hannah. Does that sound bad?"

"No," Frank shook his head. He walked slowly around the bed, holding on to his bandaged arm, and moved the chair closer to her. "I feel the same way. But you didn't upset your family by yelling at them to get out."

"Oh, you didn't," Nancy scrunched up her face.

"Yeah, I did," Frank leaned over from the chair. "I feel bad but I just didn't want to see them."

"Understandable," she said. Nancy took in his face again, almost as if making sure he was real. She smiled sadly, touching his face where stubble was forming from a few days without shaving. "You look good with facial hair."

Frank laughed for the first time in a while and kissed her hand. She tried to raise her other hand but stopped when she heard the clink of the handcuff hitting the bed rail. He watched her start getting frustrated and upset, trying to pull the handcuff off but he stood up and gently took hold of her hand. He held up a finger to have her wait and Nancy watched him take out the key Amelia gave him. He struggled with it a little since he did it with one hand but the cuff eventually unlocked. Once her hand was free, Nancy rubbed her wrist to work out the pain.

"Thanks," she said with a small smile.

"How are you doing?" he asked, watching her.

"The best I can, considering," Nancy answered. "You?"

"Other than my shoulder hurting, I'm fine," Frank shrugged but gasped in pain from his shoulder. "What are we going to do?"

"I don't know," she said, shaking her head. "I'm a little scared. I don't know what to expect and I think our families are not going to understand, whatever we decide."

"I know," Frank said. The two talked for a while about everything except what they just experienced. It felt good to Frank that he was able to open up again with her. Over the course of the past year, he missed the moments where they sat down and discussed their cases and problems that arose. The time was right for them to talk. No one was around to interrupt, no families to fuss over where or how they were. Their conversation stopped when Amelia returned to the room.

"Hello, Nancy. Frank," she replied. Amelia seemed relieved to see that they were just talking. She nervously looked toward the door and looked back at them. "Um, there are some people out in the hall who would like to speak with you. Are you two up for it?"

Nancy shifted herself in the bed and leaned over to look around the curtain. She looked over at Frank. Both of them knew it was time for their story to come out.

"Okay," Frank said. Nancy nodded in agreement. They soon heard an argument erupt just outside the door and looked to Amelia for an answer.

"Wait here and don't come out," Amelia ordered. "I'll be back in with them in a few moments."

As she left the room, Frank and Nancy spoke quietly about who could be coming in and wondered what was going to happen next.


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter Thirty-Five

Amelia waited in the hallway as Nancy and Frank talked. Since she didn't hear anything coming from the room other than small talk, Amelia knew her instinct was right in getting them in the same room together. Her phone chirped letting her know a message came in. She looked down and frowned at what she read. Walking to Nancy's door, Amelia cracked it open to hear them laughing softly within. Not wanting to disrupt their time together until it was necessary, she closed the door, making sure it didn't click. Just as Amelia smoothed herself out and crossed the hall, Chief McGinnis and Detective Norris led a group of people down the hall toward her.

"Chief," she said, acting like she didn't know what was going on. "Everything okay?"

"Yes," he answered with a grim face. "We need to see them. Are they awake?"

"Of course," Amelia replied, nodding her head. She looked at some of the people he was with, noticing a woman with a broken nose, smirking. "Just let me talk to them for a moment."

As she entered Nancy's room again, Amelia saw out of the corner of her eye, Carson, Hannah, and the Hardys stepping off the elevator. Closing the door, she knew there may be sparks flying before she returned to the hallway.

* * *

Joe followed his parents off the elevator, immediately seeing the spectacle outside Frank's and Nancy's rooms. Along with Chief McGinnis and Detective Norris, there were five other people waiting. His eyes narrowed when he saw Lt. Mitchell among the group. She stood with her arms folded in front of her and a scowl upon her face when she turned toward them.

"Damn, that is one mean looking woman," Laura replied quietly. Joe snickered but soon regained his composure when they stopped feet away from the other group.

"What's going on here?" Carson demanded, turning on his lawyer attitude.

"Just an informal conversation," one of the men said. "I'm…"

"I know who you are Chief Dorwood," Carson snapped. "But what I want to know is why you're here along with District Attorney Don Spencer?"

"Sorry to do this, Carson," the DA replied. "We're here to get some answers."

"That's not informal and you know it," Carson replied, his voice rising. "It's more like an interrogation. I don't think you would have a court reporter with you if it weren't."

"Nothing gets by you, Carson," replied the DA, "Yes, we are here on official business. The mayor is not happy and wants this to be resolved today."

"My father and I want them arrested," Lt. Mitchell suddenly spoke out. Carson eyed her but didn't say a word. "Both of them are a threat and I want justice for what they did!"

"Like you really didn't deserve it!" cried Joe, trying to move toward the woman but his mother held him back.

"Oh, this coming from someone whose ribs were broken by the same person who did this to me!" yelled Mitchell, pointing to her nose. "I warned you not to go with us but you should be doing the same thing I am!"

"That's enough, Mitchell!" yelled Chief Dorwood. She tried to argue with him but he held his hand up, silencing her. "Save it! You'll have your chance!"

Amelia walked out of Nancy's room and Joe realized Frank must be in her room as well. He leaned over to open his brother's door and sure enough, an empty bed greeted him. Joe nudged his dad to show him as the other group filed inside Nancy's room. Carson began to protest to be let in but Amelia held him back.

"I can't let you all in," she replied sternly. "Those two can handle themselves more than you know."

"But don't they need us?" asked Laura. "Or at least a lawyer?"

"They've been fine for the past three hours, if that makes you feel any better," Amelia stated. "No outbursts. No fighting. Just calm and collected. In fact, I heard them laughing not too long ago."

"So they're okay?" Fenton asked, hopeful.

"In a sense," Amelia shrugged. "But unfortunately, they still need time. I may not have heard what they were talking about but I think Nancy and Frank are still sorting things through."

"When can we see them?" asked Carson.

"When they are ready," Amelia vaguely replied. She left them all standing in the hallway and reentered Nancy's room.

The two families didn't know what to do other than wait it out. At first, a small argument broke out inside the room but it soon got quiet. They waited over the course of the next two hours, hearing very little come from the room until a screaming match began. Joe was really surprised when heard Nancy's voice yelling back and within seconds, the door suddenly opened. Lt. Mitchell stormed out of the room, screaming and slammed the door. It echoed up and down the hall as the woman went through the stairwell instead of the elevator. They could still hear her screaming as the door closed.

* * *

Chief McGinnis did not know what to expect when he entered Nancy's room. What he didn't expect though was to find both of them alert and ready to talk. Nancy sat up in her bed, hands in her lap. She looked pleasant enough but he could see the hollowness in her eyes as if she hadn't slept or ate in days. Frank sat in the chair next to the bed, his arm still in a sling. He looked tired but seemed to know what was coming as the parade came through.

The court reporter sat down and took out her machine, ready to type. There were not enough seats in the room so most of the group stood. McGinnis introduced everyone, the court reporter typing away. When he got to Lt. Mitchell, she narrowed her eyes and stared at Nancy, who avoided her uncomfortable gaze. Amelia soon reentered the room and took a spot near the bed.

"Good. Now that we know who everyone is," McGinnis clapped his hands, "we can get started. Nancy, Frank, are you ready?"

"Question," Nancy said, raising her hand. Frank hid a smile behind his hand knowing she was going to be the one to ask a question. "Why are all of you here? I'm a bit confused by this."

"This is a formal interview, Miss Drew," replied DA Spencer. "We wanted to get some answers before we go any further with this investigation."

"Meaning we want to know what you did," sneered Lt. Mitchell, "before we throw both of your asses in jail!"

"Lt. Mitchell!" cried Chief McGinnis. "You are out of line! Dorwood, please control her!"

"What do you mean put us in jail?" demanded Frank, his face getting red. "We didn't know what we were doing!"

"It's okay, Frank," Amelia said calmly. "Some of us know that while others need more answers."

"Do we need a lawyer?" Nancy asked. She looked a little on the scared side but was able to keep herself from breaking down again. Lt. Mitchell scoffed at Nancy and rolled her eyes.

"No, Nancy," replied Nora. "I'm here on the capacity to make sure you have rights even though I can't be your lawyer."

"One more outburst from you, lieutenant," warned the DA, "and you're out of here!"

Mitchell sulked into the corner, glaring at Nancy for the remainder of the interview.

"Now, Miss Drew," Spencer said calmly, keeping up the formality. "Can you tell us everything you remember from the time you were kidnapped from your home three weeks ago?"

Nancy sighed and closed her eyes. She didn't want to be first but knew it was inevitable. She began relaying everything that happened from the moment James walked into her house. Nancy described how at first the doctor was nice but when she tried calling her father, Cox's demeanor changed. It was then that those around her noticed her memories were a little bit vague.

"I…I don't remember much about what happened then," Nancy said in a daze. The others looked at her and waited concerned they were going to lose her. Frank took her hand and she gazed over at him, her eyes glassy. She blinked several times and shook her head as if pulling herself out of trance. "What just happened?"

They all looked around at each other, not knowing what to say. Amelia did not even know what to do.

"Do you remember anything after that point?" Spencer urged gently.

"Dad came into a room and I was sitting in a chair," Nancy said slowly. Her face was starting to scrunch up as she remembered what happened next. "It was like I was watching myself from a two-way mirror, as I…I…"

She burst into tears, sobbing for a few minutes. They all knew what happened without her even finishing the memory.

"When I saw Frank and Joe come in," Nancy finally continued, "that's when I woke up from the nightmare only to find out it was real. What have I done?"

"It's okay, Nancy," replied Amelia, patting her hand. "Do you need a break?"

"No," she answered. Nancy took a moment to compose herself. "I'm fine but there's really not much else I can tell. Everything is very vague and hazy."

"Tell us what you can," Nora urged.

"Okay, um, I don't remember much up until I sat down at a dining room table," Nancy replied. "Dr. Cox and James were there. He let me eat finally that day but told me to stop after only a few bites. I couldn't help myself."

"Who did that?" asked Amelia. She was beginning to understand how Nancy was programmed but needed a little bit of information to confirm her suspicions.

"Dr. Cox," Nancy replied strangely. "He wouldn't let me eat, I rarely slept. At least I think I rarely slept. That's the extent of what I remember he did to me. I do remember you, Amelia. He was so upset with you."

Amelia smiled sadly, knowing that day. Nancy was such a fighter that not even Dr. Cox realized how strong she was. The young woman continued to struggle and Amelia had a feeling that Nancy was going to take longer to heal than Frank.

"I went back into the haze," Nancy continued trying to recall everything. "But when I saw Frank in that room, I woke up again."

"What do you remember about this room?" asked Norris. She described the same room Norris saw on the video and how she was able to get away when Frank told her to go. Her meeting with James and the conversation she had with him and Amelia.

"He told me to have hope," Nancy said. "James was going to get us out of the house but I had to be patient. That's when he gave me back to the doctor. They argued again for a little bit before Maddox took me back upstairs."

"What were they arguing about?" asked Spencer.

"Me, I think," Nancy answered. "James was saying that the plan kept changing and he didn't want me to be hurt. Dr. Cox kept insisting I would be fine. Everything else is difficult to remember up until right before the helicopter crashed."

"What happened on the helicopter, Nancy?"

"I don't know!" she cried, crying again.

"I think we need to move on or take a breather," Amelia stated. She gave Nancy a glass of water and the young woman downed it quickly, in between sobs. The other people in the room were troubled by what Nancy told them, except for Lt. Mitchell. She stood in the corner, shaking her head disbelieving.

"You're right, Amelia," replied McGinnis. "Unless you are okay to continue, Frank, we can take a break."

"No," answered Frank. "I'm ready. I want to get it over with."

"Okay," McGinnis shrugged.

"We all know why you came here and what happened in the days after Nancy's kidnapping," Spencer replied. "What I would like to know is your perspective of the events after the raid on the first house, Frank."

"I'm not sure what I can help you with on that," Frank said. "I woke up days later with a massive headache and no memory of what happened."

"Well, do you remember Maddox taking you?" Norris asked.

"Yes, I think so," Frank stated. "He told me that he was a friend of Nancy's. I didn't know him at the time but with the state of mind I had at that moment, I would have believed him to be the Easter Bunny. I mostly remember him from the house. He had taken a liking to Nancy and I didn't like it."

"Do you remember anything else in particular?" Spencer asked.

"Yeah, pain," Frank said darkly. "Lots of pain. And Nancy. I vaguely remember seeing my father step in front of…you, Detective Norris. I fought it hard, whatever Cox did to me but like Nancy said, I felt like I was watching myself through a mirror until Dad…Dr. Cox wanted me to shoot. He was practically screaming in my ear to do it."

"Wait, he was communicating with you the whole time?" McGinnis asked, interested.

"Yes, he had me wear an ear bud," Frank replied. "He kept saying something over and over again. The programming kept kicking in but I shifted my hand slightly so I wouldn't kill Dad."

Frank stopped and looked down at his hand. He couldn't bear thinking about what he did to his father. Norris gently nudged him to continue.

"I saw Nancy in the hangar and we waited for Dr. Cox," Frank said slowly. Nancy looked at him, tears flowing. He knew she didn't remember any of it. Frank told the story of Dr. Cox telling James everything and how James escaped. The conversation with James and how he fully woke up.

"So that brings us to the helicopter," replied Spencer. "I want to know what went on and why it crashed."

Frank told the story from the moment the helicopter took off. Norris pursed his lips as he heard Frank admit he pushed Maddox off, confirming his own suspicions.

"Was James on the helicopter?" Spencer asked.

"Yes," Frank confirmed. "But I didn't let it be known. That was when the doctor shot me in the shoulder and the pilot was killed. We fought over his gun and shot out the main rotor. That's how it crashed."

"Who killed Dr. Cox?" asked Spencer. Frank and Nancy looked at each other but didn't say a word. The others waited to hear which one would confess.

"I did," Nancy replied in a small voice, her head down. She couldn't look up at the shocked faces in front of her. "He…he was going to kill Frank and I didn't want that to happen. It's what drove me out of the haze. I picked up Frank's gun and shot the doctor in the back."

The group stood in silence, too shocked at the revelation to say anything. They could tell it was hard for her to admit as she sobbed. Only Lt. Mitchell didn't believe the story.

"You two are good," she said, breaking the silence. "Coming up with this cockamamie bull story to get off on assaulting a police officer and you all believe them, hook, line and sinker. Well, I don't! I want justice for what she did to me and the men I was with! I saw what she did in that room! I saw everything and you heard both of them confess to killing two people! What are you going to do about that, Mr. Spencer? Are you going to charge them with murder too?"

"No, I'm not, lieutenant," Spencer stated loudly. "In fact, with all the evidence now and video to prove what Mr. Hardy and Miss Drew both said, I would be laughed at if I did charge them with anything! You need to get off your high horse, Miss Mitchell, before you get into more trouble than you bargained for!"

"How dare you speak to me like that!" she cried. "My father will have your heads for this!"

"Get out," said Nancy so softly, they almost didn't hear her. She still stared at her bed.

"What did you say to me?" asked Mitchell.

"I said," yelled Nancy, looking up at the lieutenant, fury in her eyes, "Get out! Is that loud enough for you to hear?"

The woman stared at her, wide-eyed, her mouth moving though nothing came out. The others in the room stood awkwardly, not knowing what to say themselves. Detective Norris, however, grinned ear to ear, sharing a look with Amelia, who also smirked. They knew the lieutenant deserved it.

"Fine!" screamed Mitchell, throwing her hands up. She stormed out the door. "This isn't over!"

"Yeah," muttered Norris, "it is."


	36. Chapter 36

**Author's Note:**

 **Sorry it took me so long to get this one out. I had some misgivings about the ending and needed to change a few things, not necessarily in this chapter but in future chapters. Thanks for all the great reviews and we are almost done! Let me know what you think in the review section.**

Chapter Thirty-Six

"I am so sorry for all of this," Spencer replied. "I didn't want to be here but the mayor insisted we get answers."

"So, what do we do now?" Nancy asked, her voice calmer since Mitchell was gone. "Do we need to worry about the mayor?"

"No, it's more like he needs to worry about me," Spencer laughed. "Him and his daughter. What say you, Chief Dorwood?"

"I agree," Dorwood answered. "I believe she just earned herself a suspension for the outburst after she was warned. As for the mayor, we have work to do with him. Miss Drew, Mr. Hardy, please accept my apology for this. After what McGinnis, Norris, and Ms. Miller showed us earlier, we should have never come."

"What are you talking about?" Frank asked.

"They don't know?" asked Spencer, looking at Chief McGinnis. "I thought you would have showed them or at least told them about it."

"We haven't had the chance," Norris replied. "We would have said something earlier but we didn't know if they were ready to hear it."

"Okay," Nancy replied, getting a bit annoyed. "Please stop acting like we're not sitting in front of you and tell us what you're talking about before I lay a smackdown."

Surprised by her sudden change in attitude, Detective Norris explained everything about Kyla and the emails she sent, including the videos.

"If it hadn't been for her," Norris replied, "we never would have found either of you."

"What was in the videos?" Frank asked. Norris and McGinnis looked at each other, trying to find the right words to say. Nora Miller looked a bit uncomfortable, shifting from one foot to the next.

"You said you felt a lot of pain," Norris said sadly. "The first couple of videos were mostly of things going on around the house, including a few of Nancy. But they were nothing compared to the last one. We couldn't even finish it the first time around."

"It's the main reason why I didn't want to press charges on either of you," said Spencer. He grimly looked at Frank before continuing. "The last video was of you but I can't even begin to describe it."

"As far as we can see in the video," McGinnis replied slowly, "Dr. Cox/Cosgrove kept giving you drugs while you wore headphones. We couldn't hear anything but we could tell there was a lot of screaming involved."

"That was how he originally manipulated people twenty years ago," Amelia said. "He had been perfecting a drug that would do the work for him while the patient was virtually tortured into submission. My guess is that you were the real experiment. He had weeks with Nancy and did it slowly while with you, Frank, he only had days. Leo more than likely knew the police would eventually come and wanted to quicken the pace in order to give a 'show' to his employer, whoever he or she is."

"We found video cameras along the hallway and in the bedroom where we encountered the two of you," Norris said. "It was a set up the whole time. Your dad caught on but it was too late."

"The pain you say you remember," Amelia continued, "was probably him giving you too much."

The room remained silently for a few minutes as Frank took in what was said. It would explain a lot of the feeling he had when he remembered his time with the doctor. He didn't want any kind of drugs in his system anymore since that time either. Frank looked at his arm, seeing the track scars of where Dr. Cox shoved needles in. The more drugs that was given the more pain they held, the more screaming he started to remember. He closed his eyes and dropped his head to Nancy's bed, trying to block out everything though it did nothing to stifle the pain. A hand gently touched his head, fingers running through his hair as he started to softly cry. Taking a moment to regain his composure, Frank wiped his face and looked up at the sad faces watching him.

"Have you told my parents?" Frank asked.

"No," McGinnis replied. "We didn't want to upset them anymore than was necessary. If you want us to, we can. It may help them understand everything a little bit."

"If and when you do," Frank said, adamantly, "don't show my mother. I think it would break her heart and scare her to death."

"We will honor the request as best we can," McGinnis replied with a laugh, "though your mother can be very stubborn."

"Yeah, I know," Frank rolled his eyes. He watched as the group began to gather themselves to leave.

"Before I forget though," Norris said, holding up a finger. He went to the door and grabbed a bag that he left just inside. When he came back, Norris was holding Frank's laptop bag. "I wanted to give this back to you. That Kyla is a good friend."

"Yeah, she is, isn't she?" Frank said with a small smile.

"What I'm still trying to figure out is how she knew I was a cop."

"Oh, she can turn people's web cams on when they're not looking," Frank said nonchalantly. Norris gave him a stunned look. "She did it to me once but I flipped her on it and she never did it again. Until now that is."

"You know what she looks like then?" McGinnis laughed at Norris.

"A little on the young side," Frank shrugged, laughing lightly, the memories of his experience being pushed into the back of his mind. "Not my type though. She's too goth for me."

"Do either of you know what happened to James?" McGinnis said suddenly. "We haven't been able to find him."

"He was here," Nancy admitted. "Last night."

"Did he say why he came to see you?"

"He said he wanted to see me before he left," she answered. "And to…say he was sorry for everything."

"Well, I guess that's why we haven't been able to find him," Norris shrugged. He had feeling that she wasn't telling the whole truth but didn't press her on it. "You'll let us know if he contacts you again, right?"

"Absolutely," Nancy smiled.

"Thank you for your time," replied Spencer. "If there is anything else you remember or need to say, please let me know."

Handing Nancy his card, the DA gave a small wave and followed the court reporter and Dorwood, who were already leaving the room. McGinnis, Norris, and Nora left as well with Amelia staying behind. Frank made a small wave to the door as the three left. When the door closed finally, Nancy lay back onto the pillow and closed her eyes. She felt drained from all the talking and wanted nothing more than to sleep although it was disrupted by the images of everything. Her eyes popped back open and she noticed Frank staring at her.

"What?"

"You look exhausted, Nan," he said, concerned. "Are you sure you don't want to get some rest?"

"I will when I don't have to watch everything replay itself in my head," Nancy said with a bite. "Were you really telling the truth about Kyla?"

"Were you really telling the truth about James?" Frank retorted, raising his eyebrow.

"Touché."

"What are you two talking about?" Amelia asked, amused at how comfortable they were around each other. She wondered how they were able to be so calm after everything they said and done over the past few weeks. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

"Even though I'm still mad as hell at him," Nancy confessed, "James left something here that I haven't had the chance to look through. It's why I didn't tell them about it."

"Typical," Frank laughed.

"What?" Nancy looked at him innocently. "There's a bag underneath the bed. I just wanted to see what was in it."

"Yeah, and curiosity killed the cat," Frank stated. "You do this every time."

"Oh, I do not!" she cried, slapping his good arm. She watched as Amelia retrieved the bag from under the bed and laid her head back onto the pillow. When Amelia opened it and pulled out the silver case, Frank suddenly stopped smiling. He looked up at her and she realized he knew what it was.

"How did James get that?" Frank asked.

"What? What is it?" Nancy asked, popping her head up again.

"That's the doctor's case," he replied. "He was looking through it while we were on the helicopter and acted as if it were more important than life itself. But how?"

* * *

"How much longer do we have to wait?" asked Joe. It was a half hour after Lt. Mitchell stormed out of the room and they were still waiting in the hallway for the rest of the group to come out.

"If you ask one more time, Joe," Laura replied, annoyed, "I'll bend you over my knee. You may be an adult but you're sure as hell acting like a child."

Joe crossed his arms and slumped to the wall to sulk. He was beyond bored but didn't want to leave for fear of missing out on something. Being right across from the door, Joe was able to see right into the room when it finally opened. He looked over as Chief Dorwood held the door open for the court reporter and DA Spencer, both of whom left quickly with only a smile and not so much as a word. Dorwood soon followed them to the elevators. For a split second, Joe caught a glimpse of his brother and only a little of Nancy. Frank was just lounging on the chair next to the bed, looking a bit haggard. When they caught each other's eye, Frank gave him a sad look and half a wave before McGinnis, Norris, and Nora walked out of the room and closed the door behind them.

"Well?" Carson asked impatiently, his arms folded in front of him.

"No charges will be filed," Nora smiled. "Their story can be backed up by evidence and testimony."

The families heaved a collected sigh of relief as Joe moved closer to his parents. They hugged one another but Carson still looked a little troubled though Joe didn't know why.

"That's wonderful," Carson replied. "But what kind of evidence are you talking about?"

"It will come out in time, Carson," replied McGinnis. "They told us everything that they knew or remembered though I would never wish it upon anyone to go through what Frank and Nancy did. Amelia is with them now so I'm not sure when you can go in."

"What can we do for now?" asked Laura.

"Not sure," McGinnis shrugged. "That's up to them, and frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if either one of them crashed and burned very soon. Telling their stories seemed to zap their energy, especially Nancy."

"How is she?" Carson asked. They all could tell he wanted to go in to be with her but Carson also wanted to respect her wishes.

"Tired," McGinnis sighed. "She hasn't slept or eaten much for quite some time. I was waiting for her to fall asleep during the whole interview."

"What about Frank?" asked Fenton.

"He seems fine but don't expect a lot from him at the moment," Norris answered this time. "Both of them are going to be haunted by this for a long time. In the near future, we'll all sit down and discuss everything but for now, I would suggest you take this time to be thankful that you have them back."

"We need to get going," Chief McGinnis said. "We have a few things to deal with back in River Heights anyway. When they're discharged, your house is ready for you to return. I got word that the clean-up crew came in but it wasn't necessary for them to be there."

"What do you mean?" asked Carson.

"Well, a few people came in and cleaned up the house," McGinnis smiled. "They left a little something there too that you might want to see."

"Thank you, Chief," Carson said, shaking the man's hand. "For everything."

"No problem," the Chief smiled again. He and Norris waved good bye as they walked to the elevator down the hall.

"I'm glad to hear about the house," Nora replied. "I'm sure you want to return after everything that happened."

"Yes," Carson nodded. "I can't wait to be home even if it feels weird."

"We'll stick around for a little while," replied Fenton. "But we do eventually want to go home ourselves."

"In time, dear," Laura said. "Let's just get Frank and Nancy out of here."

"Don't worry about them," Nora replied. "From what I saw in there, they have a good support system in each other."

"What do you mean?" asked Fenton.

"Well, when one of them got upset, the other stepped in to calm them down," Nora explained. "I'm sure Dr. Foster would be able to explain it to you better than I could. It's like their experience gave them a bond, so to speak."

They heard the door open and turned to see Amelia come out. She smiled at them but looked determined, walking over to the nurse's station. They didn't know what she was saying but when the doctor came up, Amelia began speaking to him. Every so often, she would look their way and smile.

"Well, I have some good news," Amelia replied, strolling up to the group. "I got the doctor to agree to discharge Frank and Nancy in the morning."


	37. Chapter 37

**Author's Note:**

 **Happy Easter everyone! Hope you are enjoying your holiday! I, for one, just love being woken up at 6am by a 4-year-old to see what the Easter Bunny brought her! Ah, at least I got to see her face when she went down the stairs! Anyway, let me know what you think of this one in the review section! Enjoy!**

Nancy tried hard to keep her eyes open, watching Amelia put the briefcase onto the tray table and open it slowly. She wanted so badly to see what was inside but her eyes kept closing only to open them again when Amelia or Frank spoke.

"Wow," Amelia stated, looking into the case. She swiveled it around so Nancy and Frank could see. Inside lay a large, orange envelope plus a smaller white one with Nancy's name on it. She picked it up and tore it open the best she could without ripping what was inside. Nancy began reading the letter through heavily lidded eyes as Frank opened the orange envelope. Underneath was a tablet plus notebooks that Amelia snatched up quickly and began pawing through them. All three of them remained quiet, reading what they found until Frank looked up to see Nancy's eyes closed, the letter fallen out of her hands. She breathed deeply, too tired to even be able to search the bag she wanted to do earlier. He gently took the letter off the bed and began reading it.

"What does it say?" Amelia asked, looking up from the notebooks.

"It's from James," Frank answered still reading. "Nancy wasn't kidding when she said he apologized for what happened. Apparently the orange envelope is for the police while everything else is for us to use. He also said that there's money for us if we would like to use it as well."

"Is this it?" Amelia asked, pulling out a stack of cash from within the case.

"Actually, no," he said, his eyebrows raised. "There's an account number and information about how to access it. It seems that it's part of the money the doctor received as payment for us. But why would he give us that money?"

"What does James say to use it for?"

"'To get your life back,'" Frank said, scrunching his face in confusion. He stuffed the letter back into the envelope and placed it inside the case again. "Whatever that means."

Nancy's hand suddenly twitched causing some of the papers to fall off the bed. She seemed to be troubled by what she was dreaming and Frank took her hand firmly. Nancy immediately calmed down as something on one of the papers caught Frank's eye.

"What the…" he replied, letting go of her hand and picking up the paper. He scanned the page and picked up more of them off the floor, his face suddenly filled with worry. "This is impossible."

"What is it?" Amelia asked.

"The person mentioned here on this paper," Frank said, looking at her. "I know him but he's been dead for five years! This is bad! Very bad!"

"Why is that?"

"His name is William Powers," Frank began. "Five years ago, Joe and I were hired by the Network to find a double agent within the company because they needed fresh faces to hunt the person down. Unfortunately, he was high up in the Network and already knew us. We were barely able to catch up to him only he fell into a river before Powers could be arrested."

"So, how is he still alive?"

"I don't know," Frank sighed. "His body was never recovered. He was ruthless once it was discovered that he was the double agent. If Powers is the one who hired Dr. Cox, he will stop at nothing to get what he paid for, namely us."

"What are you going to do?" Amelia asked, gathering the papers and notebooks to put back into the briefcase. Frank looked at Nancy sleeping. He knew he couldn't make the decision for her but if they stayed, they would be putting their family's lives in danger. It was one of the hardest decisions Frank ever had to make but he knew he had to. He finally understood what James meant about getting their lives back.

"Do you think you can convince the doctor to let us go as soon as possible?" Frank asked, staring at Amelia.

"I think I can," Amelia thought. "Why?"

"We need to get out of here and fast."

"Okay, but don't you want your parents to know?" Amelia asked. She closed up the case and placed it back under the bed.

"No, the less they know, the better." Frank gazed at Nancy again. At first, he knew she would be mad at him for making the decision for her but eventually she would understand. He hoped.

"I'll go talk to the doctor now," Amelia replied, moving toward the door. "I can also let your family know you're okay, if you would like."

Amelia left the room even though Frank didn't respond to her. He held on to Nancy's hand. She was having another nightmare and began whimpering in her sleep. Frank wished there was a better way but knew there wasn't. Saying goodbye was going to be the hard part.

As he sat thinking of a plan, he began to yawn and leaned back in the chair. Closing his eyes for just a moment he suddenly woke up to a nasty image and Amelia touching his shoulder, trying to wake him.

"I'm sorry, Frank," she said apologetically, "but your family would like to see you. Are you up to it?"

"Oh, yeah, sure," he yawned. Frank rubbed his eyes and sat straight up in the chair. Amelia smiled and headed for the door before turning around at the last second.

"Let me go with you," she said suddenly. Frank looked at her blankly. "I can help the two of you get better. I understand what needs to be done."

"How's that?"

"The notebooks inside the case," Amelia explained, walking back to him. "They're all of Leo's notes on what he did to you and Nancy. It's all there and I can help. Leo and I started it together as a way to help people overcome their fears but he twisted into his own game. I want to finish it, if you will let me."

Frank though about it for a moment. He knew they needed help but wasn't expecting someone to give up their own life to help them.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Frank asked.

"Absolutely," Amelia said adamantly. "We can do this."

"Okay."

"Great! We'll keep this to ourselves."

As she left to get his family, Frank watched Nancy sleep, her dreams finally pleasant. He wondered how they were going to leave without letting anyone really know their plan. Frank laid his head down on her bed to think and closed his eyes again. His own dreams soon seemed to be nice, as he fell into sleep.

* * *

"We can seriously take them home?" Hannah asked excitedly.

"Wonderful!" cried Laura, looking to Fenton. "That means we could be back in New York by the end of the week!"

"Yes," Amelia said with a smile. Joe felt though that she was hiding something. "They'll be discharged between nine and ten tomorrow morning, as long as no other issues arise."

"Wonderful!" cried Carson. "Can we see them now?"

"I'd have to ask," Amelia said sadly. "Nancy fell asleep about ten minutes after Chief McGinnis and the others left. The poor child couldn't keep her eyes open. Frank and I have been talking ever since. I can see if he doesn't mind if you come in but I can't promise anything."

"Oh, we're fine with that!" Fenton laughed. "Even if we only get a few minutes with them, it will be good."

"Okay," Amelia smiled. "I'll be right back."

All of them were smiling, excited at the prospect of taking Frank and Nancy home after the whole ordeal. Only Joe didn't join in with the others. He felt something was off as to how quickly and easily Amelia was able to get Frank and Nancy released but he wasn't quite sure as to what it was. A few minutes later, Amelia came back out, seemingly happy.

"Frank said it's okay," Amelia smiled broadly. "I must warn you though, he may have fallen asleep himself. He was snoozing when I went back in."

"We'll only be a minute then," Carson stated. Hannah nodded in agreement. "That way they can get some sleep before we go home tomorrow."

Amelia opened the door, allowing them all to enter the room before she followed and closed the door. Joe realized it was the first time he had seen Nancy since they pulled her out of the lake days before. He was nervous that if she woke up, she would react like Frank did to his dad, by not wanting to look at him. When they were finally able to see around the curtain, both Nancy and Frank seemed to be asleep. Her head lolled to the side, her breathing steady and slow. Joe saw that she looked peaceful as compared to what she was days before. Frank's head was resting in the crook of his good arm on the side of Nancy's bed, face hidden.

"Oh, Fenton!" Laura cried softly, touching her husband's arm.

Nancy began moving just slightly as if something was upsetting her. Carson came up to the side of the bed and took her hand.

"Why is she doing that?" he asked Amelia, when Nancy didn't stop.

"I believe she's having a nightmare," she stated. "Ever since she fell asleep, Nancy's been having them."

"Is there any way to calm her down so she's not like this?" Carson asked concerned. Amelia looked at him sadly then her eyes darted over to Frank. Nancy started talking incoherently in her sleep, tears rolling down her cheeks. Carson tried to soothe her but she seemed to get worse. Although the nightmare was getting worse for her, Nancy still didn't wake.

Joe saw Frank move out of the corner of his eye, his brother's hand firmly clasping hers. Frank shifted his head up slightly, eyes open and watching as she went back into a peaceful slumber. The others in the room were surprised at the unexpected moment, not knowing what to say or do. Frank looked over at Carson but didn't say a word. The two men exchanged looks, almost like a silent understanding, a passage between them. Carson nodded his head, leaned over and kissed Nancy on the forehead, wishing her a silent prayer. He left silently with Hannah who was crying and didn't return.

Laura moved over to her older son and wrapped her arms around him. Frank gave a slight hug and whispered something into her ear. Joe could hear her say "Okay" as she nodded. He still didn't look at Fenton but looked at Joe and gave a small smile. Joe had a feeling that it was Frank's way of saying goodbye but he wasn't sure why. They would be taking them home tomorrow. Laura took Frank's face in her hands and kissed his cheek before waving goodbye.

"We'll see you tomorrow morning, sweetheart" she said quietly and rose. She walked out of the room, pulling Fenton, who was quiet the whole time. Joe remained behind, watching his brother.

"Are you really going to be here when we come back?" Joe asked, folding his arms in front of him.

"Yeah, why?" Frank lied.

"I know you well, Frank," Joe said. "You're acting like you won't be seeing Mom for a while. Plus I know you're lying. What's going on?"

"Nothing gets by you, does it, little brother?" Frank laughed uncomfortably.

"No, but you need to tell me," Joe said, walking closer to the bed. "I want to understand why."

"We need to go," Frank said vaguely. "Neither one of us can stay."

"I get that, but why?"

"The less you know, the better." At that, Frank closed his mouth and didn't elaborate anymore. Joe looked at him and waited but knew his brother was done talking.

"Don't go, please," he whispered. "Don't do this to Mom and Dad."

"I am doing this for them!" Frank cried, keeping his voice as low as possible. He stood up from the chair. "I'm doing it for you! For Mr. Drew and Hannah! Please understand that!"

"Okay," Joe said, raising his hands in defense. "I'm not going to argue anymore. Where are you going?"

"Not sure. I have to talk with Nancy first. She doesn't know."

"Talk to me about what?" replied a voice. The brothers looked down to see Nancy staring up at them, curious.

"Nothing it can wait," Frank said quickly. "Joe was just leaving."

"Yeah," Joe muttered angrily. "I guess I'm leaving. See you tomorrow, Nancy."

He sulked out of the room, looking back one more time before closing the door. Nancy looked at Frank and crossed her arms waiting. He could tell she was still tired but the look on her face told Frank that she wasn't going to sleep until he told her.

"What is going on, Frank?" she asked. "Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like it, either."


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter Thirty-Eight

"Why did you think I would be okay with this?" Nancy cried. Frank just finished telling her the whole story of William Powers and his theory that Powers would be coming after them.

"I had a feeling you would hate it," Frank said quietly.

"Hate it?" Nancy screeched. "It's a horrible idea, even for you! What are we supposed to tell our families? 'Hey, we love you but we have to go?' Dad's not going to let me out of his sight for weeks let alone allow me to leave for an uncertain amount of time!"

"I understand that, Nancy," Frank said calmly. "But our families would be in danger if we stayed. Besides, Joe already figured it out that we were leaving. Just not the why."

"Are you okay with this?" Nancy looked over at Amelia who remained quiet, listening the whole time.

"Although I agree with you, Frank," Amelia said, "she does have a point. How are you going to tell them?"

Frank mumbled something and couldn't look at Nancy in the face.

"What was that?" she asked.

"I wasn't planning on it, okay!" Frank yelled.

"You weren't planning on it?" Nancy asked, incredulously. "I can't believe you would be that heartless to your Mom and Dad! To Joe!"

"Do you think I don't know that?" cried Frank. "I made the decision to protect them and your dad, Nancy! If we tell them, their lives would be in danger just as much as ours! You don't know Powers like I do! If anything were to happen to my family, your family, or you, I couldn't live with myself! That's why I made the decision. I don't think we have much time before Powers gets here, either."

"You've said that they would be in danger more than once. I am saying that they need to know _something_ as to why we left. Are you sure about this whole thing?" Nancy asked.

"Absolutely," he nodded. "You have to trust me like you did on the helicopter."

Nancy bit her lip. She did trust Frank but she still wasn't sure about leaving her dad and Hannah behind, even though the guilt still remained for what she did. She wasn't even sure about leaving her life behind period.

"I trust you," Nancy said finally. She sighed and looked at Amelia, who smiled in support. Nancy knew the doctor would be giving up her own life to help them. If someone was willing to do that for them, Nancy knew Amelia would be an asset to them. "On one condition. Well, a couple, actually."

"Whatever it takes," Frank said.

"I need to go back to River Heights," Nancy stated. Frank gave her a surprised look. "There's something I have to take care of. And I want to leave a note for Dad."

"No," Frank shook his head. "What if it gets back to Powers? Your dad could be put into a tough situation."

"It's not negotiable, Frank," she said, staring at him with determination. He knew from the look he wasn't going to win the battle. "I won't say much. Just what needs to be said. And I would suggest you do the same."

"But Joe already knows we're leaving. He could relay any message."

"Yes, but it would be better coming from you," Nancy took his hand and pulled him to right in front of her face, staring into his eyes. "Now you have to trust me on this."

The two just stared quietly at each other. Frank saw in her eyes that she was dead set on doing what she wanted to do without his permission. He nodded in agreement and broke eye contact with her.

"Is there any way we can get out of here earlier?" Frank asked Amelia.

"I don't see why not," she answered and left the room.

"Um, I have one question," Nancy said. "What are we going to do about clothes? We can't exactly walk out of here in hospital gowns and scrubs. It's like twenty degrees outside."

"That's a good question," Frank laughed, looking down at his own clothes. He began searching around her room to see if there was anything for Nancy to wear. He pulled out a bag from under the bed and dumped it on the bed. The clothes looked clean but Nancy crumpled her face in confusion.

"Where did these come from?" she asked, picking up one of the boots.

"You were wearing them when they pulled you out of the lake," Amelia answered as she reentered the room. Nancy looked at her not knowing what to say. "I washed them just in case you might want to keep them for some reason. I did, though, ask your father to bring you some clothes. He left a bag over by the dresser. The clothes you had on, Frank, are under your bed as well though the shirt and jacket were a little messed up from when you were shot. Your parents brought you some clothes, too."

"You thought of everything, Amelia," Nancy smiled.

"I try," Amelia shrugged. "The earliest you can be discharged is tomorrow around six in the morning. Will that work, Frank?"

"Yes, that's fine. What time did you tell our families anyway?"

"Don't worry. You'll be in River Heights by the time they get here. What I would suggest now is rest, but that is completely up to you. I'm going back to my hotel room to gather whatever I have, which isn't much and get some rest myself. I'll be back here in the morning. I may need to stop at my house tomorrow anyway. Good night."

"Thank you, Amelia," Frank replied, waving. The doctor closed the door behind her, leaving the two to think about what to do next.

"You tired?" Nancy asked.

"Not really," he answered sitting down in the chair again. "You?"

"I am but I don't want to sleep at the moment. What I do want to do is look through that case again since I fell asleep earlier."

"You crack me up, Nan," Frank laughed. "Through all this and you still want to check out what's in there."

"I'm curious, that's all," Nancy defended herself. Frank pulled the bag out from under the bed as best he could with his bad shoulder and placed it on the tray table. "And I'm hungry."

"That sounds like something Joe would say," Frank laughed.

They called the nurse to see if they could get some food and was told dinner was on its way. Nancy took the time to look through the case thoroughly finding a few other things that peaked her interest.

"Look at this, Frank," she said pulling out a stack of passports from a side pocket. There were several including one for Dr. Cox and another for Maddox. Nancy held her breath when she came across a passport for her. The picture was of her but the name was different. It seemed that the doctor had thought that they would be able to get out of the country on phony passports. Frank found his as well with the same outcome. "I wonder if this Powers guy knows the names that are on the passports."

"I'm not sure," Frank said, flipping through his. "It's just weird seeing my picture with a different name attached to it."

"I know." Nancy rummaged through the smaller pocket and found another envelope addressed to her. She tore it open and gasped when a necklace fell into her hand.

"What is it?"

"I thought I lost this! It's the locket Dad gave me with my mom's picture in it." Nancy opened up the locket to see the picture of her mother again. Closing it quickly, she immediately put it around her neck, holding it close to her heart. Nancy was silent for a few minutes, a tear falling down her cheek. "I'm not sure I can do this."

"We'll be back," Frank said, taking her hand. "I promise you that."

"Yeah, but how long are we going to be gone for? A week? A month? A year? I don't know if I can be away from Dad and Hannah."

"We can do this. Together." Frank took a hold of her hand and squeezed it. "I know we can and with the help of Amelia we can get rid of whatever the doctor did to us. Then we wouldn't have to worry about Powers coming after us. We could return home."

Nancy studied him. She saw the determination he had but also the hurt he was feeling about leaving his own life behind. Nodding she looked down at her locket, knowing that she was never going to take it off again.

* * *

"Oh, I'm so excited!" cried Laura, as she got ready to leave the next morning. Although their luggage was left in River Heights, they still had a bit of items to take with them. Fenton was bustling about, putting things they acquired into their small overnight bag and checking drawers. "I'll be glad when we get back home!"

"Me too!" Fenton stated. "I need to get back to work. I've neglected enough phone calls as it is."

"I'm sure they'll understand, dear," she replied, patting his arm. "We had a family emergency and couldn't get back. Do you think Joe is up yet?"

"I'm not sure," Fenton said. "I didn't hear him in the other room last night but then again, I was exhausted and slept like a bear. I'll go check on him."

He walked to the next room of the suite they all shared and knocked loudly.

"Joe?" Fenton called, opening the door when no answer came. The room was dark and quiet. When the light hit the bed, it was made as if no one slept in it. Fenton went into the room's bathroom to find Joe's toiletries still there, his own overnight bag they bought still in the closet.

"Where's Joe?" asked Laura from the doorway.

"I'm not sure," Fenton said confused. "I don't think he came back last night. We left him in the lobby after we got back from the hospital. Do you remember him coming up at all?"

"No, but maybe he went back to the hospital," Laura said, hopefully. "Didn't he have the keys to the rental?"

"I think so," Fenton replied. He began gathering Joe's things, throwing them into the bag and taking it with him as he left the room.

"Are you ready?" asked Carson coming down the hall of the suite. Hannah was right behind him with her overnight bag. "Where's Joe?"

"We're thinking he left already," Fenton stated. "Do you mind if we hitch a ride with you?"

"No problem," Carson said. "Let's go. I want to get home by one."

A short drive later, the four stepped off the elevator, excited about the prospect of going home. A nurse was standing outside Frank's and Nancy's rooms and stopped them before they entered.

"Can I help you?" she asked with a stern voice.

"We're here to pick up our kids," Carson replied. He was a little worried that something may have happened again. "Nancy Drew and Frank Hardy?"

"I'm sorry but they left early this morning," the nurse replied. The four gave her baffled looks.

"What do you mean they left?" Fenton cried. Laura went into Frank's room to find the bed stripped and everything gone. When she came out, she shook her head. "We were told they would be discharged around this time."

"I thought you already knew," the nurse replied, confused. "The doctor who was with them requested it so I thought she told you."

"Obviously not," Carson said annoyed. "Did they happen to say where they were going or give any indication?"

"No, not really," stated the nurse. "Wait. I think one of the other nurses may have heard Miss Drew say something about going home first."

"When did they leave?" asked Fenton.

"After six this morning."

"Was is just the three of them or was there a fourth person? A blonde young man?"

"No, just the three of them," the nurse said getting irritated about their interrogation of her. "It's what I told the other people who came by asking."

"What other people?" asked Carson.

"They flashed a badge of some sort, not sure which one. Look, I have to get back to work, okay. If you have any other questions, please ask someone else." The nurse walked away, annoyed and gave them an evil look when she looked back.

"If Nancy said they were going home," Carson said, ignoring the rude nurse, "they must be in River Heights by now."

"But where's Joe if he isn't here?" Laura asked frantically.

"And who were the others the nurse told us about?" asked Fenton.

"I don't know," Carson said, rushing to the elevators. "But we need to go now to get to River Heights. We can try contacting Joe on the way."


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Hours after getting some food in their stomachs and a short nap, the two separated for the first time since Amelia escorted Frank into Nancy's room. He went back to his room to shower, shave, and change into the clothes his parents brought for him. Making sure he didn't leave anything in the room, Frank checked everywhere before waiting out in the hallway for Nancy to come out.

"Are you ready?" Amelia asked, coming up behind him in the hall.

"As ready as I can be," he answered. "Just a little nervous is all."

The door to Nancy's room opened and she stepped out into the hallway, carrying her bags and the flowers her father left for her. Amelia took the bags away from her while Frank stared at Nancy for a few minutes, his mouth open slightly. She flipped her hair out from under the jacket she wore and noticed him staring.

"Is there something wrong?" she asked, looking down at herself. "Did I miss a button or something?"

"Oh, no," Frank said, clearing his throat. "It's just that you look…normal."

"Um, thank you," Nancy replied. "I think. I'm surprised that the clothes are pretty decent from Dad, though I have a feeling Hannah bought them."

"Yeah, I think Joe might have used his influence on mine." Frank frowned a bit, looking down at the t-shirt he wore under a hoodie. "Not a fan of the band. He knows that too."

"Well, let's get going," Amelia replied. "I have a car waiting downstairs."

"A car?" asked Nancy.

"Yeah, well since none of us have an ID at the moment to rent a car," Amelia explained, "I had to get something else that would be inconspicuous."

A light snow was falling when they walked out the front door of the hospital. A black Lincoln sedan waited for them under the eaves. When the driver saw Amelia, he rushed to open the back door for them and came to take their bags to the trunk. Frank insisted on keeping his laptop and the bag with the silver case with him. Although the car was not big on the outside, the inside was spacious to allow them ample room to move about. A glass window separated them from the driver, allowing them privacy. Once they were on their way to River Heights, Frank pulled out the case to go through it again in case he missed anything.

"This is what you call 'inconspicuous?'" Nancy laughed, raising an eyebrow at Amelia.

"What? Would you rather have no privacy or room inside a big yellow taxi that screams come and get me?"

"People are going to know we're back anyway when we pull up to your house, Nancy," Frank stated from behind the paperwork he was looking at. "Do you have your letter?"

"Do you?" Nancy showed hers as Frank pulled his from his pocket. Each one was sealed and labeled in an envelope they borrowed from the hospital.

They all chit chatted throughout the rest of the trip, planning where they would be going after they were done in River Heights. After the decision was made to head to the bank where the money was, Frank got out his laptop and began checking flights to the destination. Once they reached River Heights, Nancy got quiet and stared out the window at the town she grew up in. People stared at the car though they couldn't see inside as the trio rode by.

The driver stopped at Amelia's house first to drop her off. She wanted to take care of a few things before Nancy and Frank returned to get her. They knew they had maybe two and a half hours before their families arrived in town looking for them so time was of the essence. Instead of going home first though, Nancy requested the driver take them to a different house. When Frank pressed her on it, Nancy told him that it was something she needed to take care of before they left. She remained silent the rest of the ride until they came to a quaint ranch three blocks from her house.

Nancy felt vulnerable knowing that the moment she got out of the car, the entire neighborhood and possibly the whole town would know she was back. With no coat, shivered and hurried her way to the front porch, ringing the doorbell and waiting. Frank stayed in the car at her request. She was about to go back to the car, thinking no one was home, when the door opened.

"Yes?" replied a voice behind Nancy. She was so nervous she almost ran off but turned instead to the person standing at the door. "Nancy?"

"Hi, Mrs. Nickerson," Nancy replied with a small smile. "May I come in for just a moment?"

"Yes, of course! Come in!" Mrs. Nickerson cried, opening the door to let her in. "Would you like some tea?"

"Um, no, thank you," she answered. "I can't stay long. I just wanted to speak with you about Ned."

"Oh, dear, you don't have to explain anything."

"No, I need to...I am so sorry about everything," Nancy replied quietly, tears flowing down her face. She couldn't look the woman in the face, keeping her head down. "It's all my fault that Ned is dead! Dad, he was worried about me so he asked him to come by to get me for the banquet. If Ned hadn't done that, he would be here now! Please forgive me!"

"Oh, it's not your fault!" Nancy looked up at Mrs. Nickerson to see the woman smile. "I, at first, blamed your father for what happened. If he had told everyone about James Matthews, maybe it could have been avoided. But then I realized that no one could have seen it coming, not even the great Carson Drew. I can't blame him or even you, dear. Ned loved you so much even after you two broke up. I thought maybe one day, we would be welcoming you into the family but now, that's…"

"I know," Nancy said. "I wanted something more with Ned but then when we decided to part ways. I didn't think he still loved me. When he died...he finally said it. I wanted you to know that."

"Thank you, Nancy." Mrs. Nickerson patted her hand. "I needed to hear that. Now, you need to do something for me."

"What is it?" Nancy sniffled.

"Live your life. Don't let his death make you forget to live. If you find love again, grasp it and don't let go. Can you do that for me?"

"I can try."

"Then don't do it for me. Do it for Ned. He would want it that way. Promise?"

"I promise." The two women hugged and wiped their faces. "I have to go."

"I understand, dear. Come back anytime, dear. You and your father are always welcome here."

Nancy gave her a strained look and waved goodbye as she walked down to the car. Frank looked at her when she closed the door but didn't say anything. He noticed the tears flowing as the car began to move to their next destination. After a short drive, she ordered the driver to park at the back of the house but they soon noticed a car sitting in the driveway. The moment the car stopped, Nancy grabbed the flowers and shot out of the car without a word and walked quickly to the back of the house. She found the spare key and unlocked the door, slamming it behind her. As Frank got out of the car, the door to the other car opened.

"Joe?" Frank said. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Joe replied, annoyed. He stood in front of Frank, blocking him from going into the house. "I had a hunch and came here instead last night, waiting for you and Nancy. I knew I would see you one way or another. I just hoped it would be with Mom and Dad."

"Joe, you need to go," Frank said, trying to get by his brother. "You can't be here right now."

"No, I'm right where I should be!" Joe cried. "And why was Nancy so upset? Did you do that?"

"Do you honestly think I would do anything to hurt her?" Frank said, getting irritated. "She just visited Ned's mother, what do you expect?"

"Oh," Joe said, embarrassed. "Well, did you at least say goodbye to Mom and Dad?"

Frank grimly looked at his brother and Joe knew the answer. The older Hardy walked around the other and into the house. Joe stayed in the driveway, not wanting to follow. A few minutes later, Frank returned with his suitcase and overcoat. The driver got out of the car and took the luggage to the trunk while Frank told him to wait for Nancy. He turned to his brother, who stood waiting with watery eyes.

"You're really going through with it?" Joe asked.

"Yes," Frank said quietly, suddenly looking at the ground. "We don't have a choice."

"Yeah, you do," Joe said. "You need to look me in the eye and tell me what's going on!"

"I can't!" cried Frank, finally able to look at him.

"Why not?" Joe yelled back.

"That's enough, Joe!" cried a voice behind them. They turned to see Nancy standing at the back door of the house, her suitcase and overnight bag in her arms. Joe noticed she was trying hard not to look at him as she stood there. The driver rushed up to her and took the bags, Nancy stepping forward slowly. "We have to live with this decision and it pains us to leave. I'm not happy with it but I trust Frank and you should too."

"What are you planning to do? Where are you going to go?"

"Someplace warm and sunny," Frank replied vaguely though Joe had a feeling that he was lying. "There are some envelopes on the table in the dining room. Please make sure they get to the right people."

"Yeah, whatever, Frank," Joe muttered. "At least let me take you to wherever you're going next."

"No, Joe," Nancy said softly. "We can do this on our own. The driver can get us there okay."

Although it seemed a little forced, she gave Joe a small hug and got into the car, leaving the two brothers to say goodbye. Frank stood nearby, looking at the ground. Joe stepped forward a little but didn't say anything.

"Please make sure…"

"I got it. I don't understand this, Frank. I just don't."

"You will but not right now. We have to go."

"I know. Are you sure about this?"

"No, but I have faith, Joe," Frank smiled. "We'll see you soon."

The brothers hugged tightly before Frank let go and walked to the car. He took one last look at Joe and got in. As the car backed out of the driveway, Joe followed it to the front of the house, hoping it would turn around. His hopes were dashed when he saw the car round the corner down the street. Walking to the front porch, he sat down, put his head in his hands and waited for his parents to arrive with Carson and Hannah.


	40. Chapter 40

**Author's Note:**

 **Well, I have a feeling I'm about to upset a few people but this is the last chapter before the epilogue. I feel that the original story is complete and that a new one is about to unfold. No worries though! There's one in the winds though it may be shorter, not sure yet. Thank you to everyone who has supported this story from the very beginning! I have appreciated all the input, used any suggestions that I may have received. This chapter is a bit on the long side but as you come to the end, you will understand why I couldn't find the right moment to break. Enjoy and don't forget to review!**

Chapter Forty

"I wonder why Joe isn't answering his phone," Laura said. She was getting worried about her younger son since they haven't heard from him. The phone kept going right into voicemail whenever she called, as if it were turned off. "How much further do we have to go, Carson?"

"We're about five minutes away from the exit," he replied. Carson drove nonstop in the hopes of getting home as quickly as possible. He was concerned by what the nurse told them earlier about what Nancy said. It sounded like they were going to River Heights as a stop on the way to another location. Carson wasn't sure if any of the others picked up on the tidbit since no one said anything about it.

The exit sign for River Heights came up and Carson guided the car onto the off ramp. Just as they were entering the main area of the town, the phone rang off in the car's Bluetooth system. He made a weird face when he saw the caller ID came up as Nickerson.

"Hello?" Carson said after hitting the receive button on the steering wheel.

"Carson?" Edith Nickerson's voice emulated through the speakers. "Is everything okay?"

"I hope so, why?" He turned at a light just as a dark sedan drove by but he didn't think anything of it.

"Nancy was just here about an hour ago," she replied. "I would have called earlier but I didn't think of it until just now."

"She was there?"

"Yes, and she was acting very strange, almost as if she were saying goodbye. Do you know anything about it?"

"No, we just got back into town, looking for her and a friend of ours. Was she with anyone?"

"No, but a car waited out front with the engine running. She wasn't here that long, maybe ten minutes. She wanted to talk to me about Ned for some reason."

"Did she say anything else?"

"Not really but she gave me a strange look when I told her she could come by anytime. That's why I called."

"Okay, thank you, Edith."

"Oh, and Carson? I am so sorry for what I said to you earlier."

"It's okay, Edith. Say hello to James for me."

"I will."

Carson pushed a button to end the call just as he turned down his street. Approaching the house, they noticed a figure sitting on the front stoop of the porch, looking right at them as he pulled the car into the main driveway along the side of the house. The Hardys' missing rental car sat in the driveway as well. Joe strolled along the side of the house towards them, hands in his pockets and head down.

"Joe!" cried Laura, rushing over and grabbing him close. "We have been worried sick about you! Why didn't you answer your phone? Why didn't you wait for us?"

"What's going on?" Fenton asked coming up beside them. "Where are Frank and Nancy?"

"Dad, they're gone," Joe said sadly, keeping his eyes down.

"What do you mean they're gone?" Laura asked. She took his face into her hands, noticing that something was wrong.

"They left a while ago," Joe said, tears coming down his face. "I tried to stop them but they just left."

"Are they coming back?" asked Fenton. Carson and Hannah listened to the conversation before rushing into the house when Joe didn't say anything. The Hardys soon followed though Joe remained silent behind them.

The house was clean with all the blemishes from the incident gone. Hannah caught her breath when they entered the dining room to a sight. The walls were repainted, the smell still noticeable and the table was filled with flowers and balloons. In the middle sat the award that Carson was to have received weeks before along with a stack of cards next to it. Three envelopes sat in the middle of the table: one reading "Dad and Hannah" in Nancy's handwriting, another reading "Mom, Dad, and Joe" in Frank's handwriting, and the largest one reading "Chief McGinnis." Carson picked up his but didn't open it.

"Carson," Hannah replied. He turned toward her to see her pointing to the bottom of the stairs. In the spot where Ned died lay the vase of flowers Carson bought for Nancy while she was in the hospital, the card itself, gone. A line of suitcases were just inside the front door, recognizing his own and Hannah's from their hotel.

"There's one missing," Fenton said, pointing to the empty space where a suitcase should have been. Dropping the envelope, Carson rushed upstairs to Nancy's room, the walls and paint redone by unknown parties. Her room was now clean. He checked her closet, not seeing her suitcase. A few of her clothes and items from the bathroom were missing.

When he returned downstairs, Fenton was comforting Laura who was crying into his shoulders. Their letter was clutched in his hand. Joe was sitting in the living room staring at the wall while Hannah waited for Carson, her eyes pleading that Nancy was upstairs. She burst into tears, handing him the letter, written in Nancy's neat, delicate print. He read the letter but couldn't completely comprehend what she was saying in it. Nancy said that she was leaving for a reason that she couldn't explain at the moment for their own safety. She said that she loved them very much but it was something that had to be done. Carson couldn't finish the letter and took a hold of Hannah. Only the sounds of their sobbing could be heard in the room until the doorbell rang, interrupting their grief. Carson rushed to the door, hoping it was maybe Nancy forgetting her key only to find the most unexpected face at the door.

* * *

"We have one more stop to make," Frank replied to Nancy. She didn't know he had a request himself in River Heights. When he gave the driver the instructions on where the stop was, Nancy raised her eyebrow in interest.

"Is there a reason why we're going there, of all places?" she asked.

"I made a promise and I intend to keep it," he said vaguely. He knew she didn't really want to get out of the car so he went inside and came back out with the reason why he stopped there.

"Hello, Nancy," replied Cami when she opened the car door. Nancy looked at her dumbfounded and got out of the car to give the woman a hug. "I'm so glad you're okay, dear! Everyone has been worried sick about you and everything going on. Are you okay?"

"Not really but we're going to be working on that." Nancy gave a small smile.

"You kept your promise, Frank," Cami said, clapping her hand on his back. "I applaud you for bringing her back safely."

"What promise was that?" Nancy asked, confused.

"Why, to bring his girl back…you!" Cami smiled and winked.

"Oh, we're not together, Cami!" Frank cried, his face getting red. Nancy shook her head too though she gave him a dirty look.

"You could have fooled me!" said Cami, nudging him. She turned to Nancy. "He was so worried about you that he nearly got himself killed right up the street here. When he was in my café, Frank could barely talk to me because he was so focused on you."

"Oh, really?" Nancy looked at Frank and put her hands on her hips. "We're just good friends, that's all. Nothing more, as far as I'm concerned."

"Uh, huh. Well, to each his own," Cami shrugged. "But you would make a handsome couple."

It was Nancy's turn to blush though she didn't understand why. She just lost Ned and wasn't really looking for a relationship with anyone, especially Frank Hardy. She knew the bond that they shared from their experience with Dr. Cox was bringing them closer together but she still had her qualms about him.

"We just wanted to stop by before we left," Frank stated, interrupting her thoughts.

"Before you leave?" Cami asked, confused. "You just got back! Nancy, what about your father? Does he know?"

"No, he doesn't," Nancy said, glaring at Frank. "We had to make the decision quickly and unexpectedly. We can't tell them or you why either."

"Oh, dear," Cami quietly said. "Would it maybe have anything to do with the men who came in here about twenty minutes ago, asking questions. They said they were lost but I wasn't sure or not. Probably were since the road here ends at the last house."

"What did they look like?" Frank asked, his heart racing.

"Nice suits and said they were from the government," Cami thought, looking a bit concerned. "Their badges were fake though. I can spot a fake anywhere. They asked where you lived, Nancy, but I gave them bad directions so they probably won't get there right away. Hopefully no one is there when they do."

"Joe!" cried Nancy, looking at Frank, alarmed.

"We have to go now," he said quickly, giving Cami a hug. "Thanks for everything, Cami!"

"Anytime!" Cami said. "You two take care of each other and come back to us soon!"

"We will!" cried Nancy. She slammed the car door and looked at Frank as he got in. "Are we heading back to the house?"

"No, we can't," Frank shook his head, giving the driver instructions to get back to Amelia's quickly. "Joe's on his own if something were to happen."

"Seriously?" Nancy looked at him as if he grew another head. "He's your brother! We have to warn him!"

Frank suddenly got quiet as he saw a familiar car heading in their direction. He silently thanked Amelia for getting them a car with tinted windows when he saw Carson Drew look at their sedan.

"Was that?"

"Yeah, we have to go now," Frank asked the driver to pick up the pace without drawing attention.

"No! We have to go back! That is my dad and your family!" Nancy cried, punching at him. She stopped when the car pulled up to Amelia's house, with the woman waiting outside on the porch. The driver got out quickly and helped put her bags into the trunk with the other luggage. Amelia raced back up to her house to lock up. She placed an envelope on the door with the key and came back to the car.

"Are you ready?" she asked when she got into the car. Amelia immediately noticed the tension between the two. "What happened?"

* * *

"Chief McGinnis!" cried Carson, wiping his face quickly. He tried to put on his best smile but the Chief gave him a look of concern. "What brings you here?"

"Where are they?" McGinnis asked, rushing into the house. Detective Norris walked in behind him and Carson closed the door.

"Who?" he asked.

"Cut the act, Carson," McGinnis said angrily. "Where are Nancy and Frank?"

"We don't know," Fenton said.

"They already left," Joe replied, coming into the foyer.

"What do you mean they already left?" McGinnis cried. "I just got a frantic call from Cami about them that they may be in danger. It's why we're here. Do you have any idea where they went?"

"They didn't say anything to me," Joe said. "I saw them over an hour ago. All I know is that they were in a hurry to get out of town."

"Did you know that they visited Cami at her café, Joe?"

"No, I have no idea what you are talking about. I do know that there's a large envelope on the table with your name on it. None of us opened it."

McGinnis walked over to the dining room table where Joe pointed, the large orange envelope still sitting there. He ripped it open and began looking through the contents with Norris looking over his shoulder. None of the others dared to move to see what the papers held.

"Crap!" cried McGinnis. He stuffed the contents back into the envelope and looked at Joe. "What were they driving?"

"They weren't driving," Joe said. "It was a black Lincoln with tinted windows and a driver."

"I saw that car!" cried Carson.

"You what?" McGinnis said. The others looked at Carson. "Where? When?"

"On the way here, right in town," Carson stated. "I can't believe I didn't put two and two together. I was on the phone with Edith Nickerson when we passed them. She said that Nancy stopped by earlier, in the same car."

"We'll get an APB out on that car," Norris said, rushing to the door. "Maybe we can catch it before they get too far."

"What is going on?" Carson replied. "They left us letters too but they said nothing about why they were leaving. Do you know why, Chief?"

"All I know is that there were a few other people looking for them," McGinnis stated. "Cami said some men came by right before Nancy and Frank."

"They were at the hospital too," said Laura. "The nurse said the same thing. Please tell us, why are they searching for them?"

"The less you know, the better," McGinnis said. "I'm going to stay here with you until we find them. Consider it protection because I don't doubt that whoever is looking for those two, will be by. We'll put an APB out on their car too. See if we can maybe end this before it starts."

"Chief, we can handle ourselves," Fenton stated. "We demand that you tell us the situation or we will keep asking until you tell us. You might as well spill."

Chief McGinnis looked at each person in the room, seeing their determined faces. Not one of them was willing to drop the subject in the hopes that it would bring back Nancy and Frank. He sighed and opened the envelope, pulling out the paperwork.

"Do any of you know who a William Powers is?" he asked.

"Oh, shit," said Joe.

* * *

"What happened?" Amelia asked again, looking from Nancy to Frank. The car was moving once more, this time getting onto the highway and speeding east, away from River Heights.

"They're here already," Frank said finally. Nancy crossed her arms and shifted as far away from him as she could, angry. "We have to get out of here as quickly as possible."

He moved to the driver and began giving orders to the driver who nodded. Nancy made a noise but still sulked in the corner.

"We have to change our plans. He's driving us to a bus station in the nearest town."

"So, that's it?" Nancy said. "We're just going to leave our families to fend for themselves and flee? Did Dr. Cox give you a heart transplant or something because the Frank Hardy I know would never do that to his family, no matter the cost."

"No, Nancy," Frank said, turning to look at her. "I'm thinking about them just as much as us. If we were at the house trying to protect our family, they would have dead anyway! There would have been no way for us to protect them!"

"We could have at least tried! Or given them word that someone was coming!" Nancy yelled. "From what you're saying, we can't even stay in this car for long! We stick out like a sore thumb and if anyone gets word as to its description, we're sitting ducks!"

"I know!" cried Frank, getting angry. "I'm thinking as we go! When we get to the next town with a bus station, we can go from there."

"Using what?" Nancy cried. "The money James gave us won't last forever and our IDs are virtually useless since they'll be looking for us!"

Frank got quiet suddenly, pulling out his laptop again and typing away on the computer. Amelia didn't say anything either, too shocked that the two were already fighting and butting heads.

"Frank, answer me!" Nancy waited then started moving to talk to the driver herself, ordering him to pull over.

"What are you doing?" Frank cried, shoving his laptop onto the floor.

"I'm getting out of this car!" she screamed. The car slowed to a large rest area. Nancy got out of the car with Frank following behind her. Amelia got out too but only to listen. She knew it would be good for them to let it all out now.

"I trusted you, Frank!" Nancy screamed, walking away. "Do you even know what you're doing?"

"Nancy, I've explained it to you already!" Frank yelled back over the roar of the cars and trucks rushing by on the highway. "I had to change everything when Cami told us about those men! They were more than likely sent by Powers!"

"Are you sure this isn't all in your head?" Nancy yelled, pulling a piece of hair from her mouth. "We both went through a lot at the hands of that mad man! He scrambled everything up and now, we're afraid of our own families! Is that what this is about?"

"No, Nancy!" Frank took her by the arms and looked her in the eyes. "William Powers is as real as you and I. You have to trust me!"

"How can I when you didn't go back to our families?" Nancy cried, tears streaming. She pulled herself away from him. "How can I when you keep changing everything? _You_ made the decision to leave and didn't even talk to me about it and for what? Paranoia? Quit making decisions for me and let me help!"

"We can do this! I told you that! With whatever James gave us, we can!"

"Then let me help you! You left your own brother behind knowing he was in danger to save your own skin! Then you let my dad and _your_ parents go back to the house! What if they're dead? What if they were led there like lambs to the slaughter? Tell me you know they're okay!"

Frank saw the fear in her eyes and knew he felt the same. He did leave Joe behind for selfish reasons but it was also to protect him and their families.

"Look, if you want we'll call," Frank said, calmer. "Just to hear their voices and to make sure. Come back to the car and we can call. Please, Nancy."

He held out his hand for her but she slapped it away. Nancy looked at him with daggers in her eyes and suddenly gave him a right hook to the mouth, knocking him to the ground.

"What was that for?" he asked, looking up at her.

"It's what you get for putting Joe in danger, Frank Hardy" Nancy spat, watching him wipe the blood from his lip. "I'll go with you, but don't you ever do something like that again!"

She walked back to the car, passing Amelia and slammed the car door. The older woman tried hide her smile as she went over to help Frank up.

"You know you deserved that," Amelia stated, brushing him off.

"Yeah, I had it coming, didn't I?" Frank said. The two walked back to the car together, Frank rubbing his jaw. He laughed and shook his head. "Now I know what Joe meant about getting on her angry side."


	41. Epilogue

Epilogue

The two men sat in the car down the street from the house. They saw the car pull in and not long after that, a squad car. One of the men was holding a small receiver aimed at the house that relayed people talking. Both of them knew from the conversation they were listening to that their targets left not long before they got there. The other man pulled out a cell phone and speed dialed a number.

"Sir?" the man replied when someone picked up on the other line. "They're gone. We just missed them. What do you want us to do?"

 _"Are you monitoring the house?"_ came the reply.

"Yes, sir, but no one seems to know anything except for the car they were in and our car. The police arrived soon after the family did."

 _"Get out of there,"_ he said angrily. _"See if you can find the car. I want them found."_

"Yes, sir. And what of their families?"

 _"Leave them be for now. We'll deal with them later."_

* * *

"Did you find them?" asked Carson when Chief McGinnis got off his cell phone, hours later. Night had settled in and they were sitting down at the table eating dinner.

"A car matching the description of the Lincoln was pulled over heading back to Chicago," McGinnis answered. "Unfortunately, they scared the crap out of the driver who was the only one in the vehicle. When he was showed pictures of Nancy and Frank, he confirmed they were in the car with him. He dropped them off along with another woman, whom we are assuming is Dr. Foster, at a bus station five towns over. By the time the state police got there, they already caught a bus, to where we don't know."

"So, that's it?" Fenton said. "What are you going to do next?"

"It may become a federal case," McGinnis said sadly. "Although none of them are in trouble, it is the people who are after them that the feds want. They have already contacted me and an Agent Davis is going to be the one in charge."

"Did anyone find the other car?" asked Hannah. "The one with the two men inside?"

"Yes," McGinnis nodded. "The car was seen right down the street here moments after you arrived. No one reported it because they were just sitting looking at a map as if they were lost. It was gone by the time any of my men arrived to investigate."

"It was that close?" cried Carson. "Are we in danger?"

"For the next few days, I'm going to have an officer here at all times," McGinnis stated. "I would suggest to you, Fenton and Laura, to stick around for a little while until we know you are all in the clear. Can you do that?"

"Yes, of course," Laura said, nodding her head.

"Agent Davis said she will be contacting you soon about any developments that may arise," McGinnis said. The house phone began ringing. Carson rose from the table to get it in the kitchen as the rest of them continued talking. He wondered who would be calling.

"Hello?" He heard nothing at first. Then a quiet voice whispered four words that made his heart skip a beat.

"I love you, Daddy." The phone went dead.

* * *

Two weeks later, after skipping across the US, avoiding the police and whoever else might be looking for them, Frank, Nancy, and Amelia sat at a little café inside the banking district of Geneva, Switzerland. While still in the states, Frank got a hold of his long time hacker friend, Kyla, asking for help in getting IDs and passports for them to get out of the country. They waited over a week to get the package from her but she eventually came through for them, using current pictures and false names she produced fake IDs and passports. Using a good portion of the money James gave them at the hospital plus some more that Amelia drained from her account, they were finally able to acquire airline tickets out of the country. With no problems getting onto the plane or through customs, the three finally seemed to heave a sigh of relief and relax a little before heading to the bank. The instructions James left for them to access the account led them to Geneva with one of the largest private and confidential banking systems in the world.

"How much longer do we have to wait?" Nancy asked, impatiently. She tapped her manicured nails on the table, annoying Frank. She was dressed in a tight black dress and long jacket that made her look uncomfortable but also looked the part she was about to play. Her hair was pulled back into a chignon at the nape of her neck with large dark sunglasses on her face. Along with a purse, she had what looked like a duffle bag that was empty. Frank sat next to her scanning the area as best he could without making it look like he was doing so. He wore a nice charcoal suit with a tie and sunglasses as well. Although he still had pain in his left shoulder from being shot, the sling was discarded before they came to Europe. Amelia was the only one who was not dressed up, in jeans and a coat.

"I think we're good," Frank replied finally, looking around one last time. His part in going into the bank was to be Nancy's bodyguard, much to her chagrin. She kept insisting that she would be fine but he told her that most rich ladies wouldn't go into a bank and make a withdrawal without some kind of protection, so she relented. He also knew she was getting annoyed with him for taking too long, so he extended his time in scanning the area to irritate her more. She was still mad at him about going all over the US and packing up every other day to stay off the grid.

"Finally!" You really know how to make a girl sweat! Literally."

"Sorry, Nancy," Frank replied, irritated. "I had to be sure we're not under surveillance. Are you ready?"

"Duh." Nancy rolled her eyes and got up out of the chair, smoothing out her dress. Although it was a temporary outfit, Frank couldn't help looking at her figure. The dress clung to her every curve, the long jacket complimenting it. Nancy looked beautiful though he was afraid to say anything in her current mood.

"I hope that when this is all over and we can move on, you two stop fighting the way you do," Amelia said quietly. "I thought you would be over this by now."

"Tell that to him," Nancy said, shrewdly. "I wanted to stay in one spot more than a few times but he kept insisting we needed to move even though there was no threat."

"If we stay in one spot, Nancy," Frank replied, rising from his own chair and grabbing the duffle bag, "we will be more vulnerable. Maybe whatever we get out of the bank will help on that front."

"Is Kyla ready for the transfers?" Nancy asked, ignoring Frank's ability to be right on occasion.

"Of course she is," he stated. "As soon as you transfer money into the account we have set up, she'll take it from there."

"Fine, then let's go," Nancy said, walking away before turning around to Amelia. "We'll meet you back here when we're through."

"Good luck!" Amelia said, waving. Nancy walked over to the bank, Frank following close behind.

The bank was beautiful on the inside, with a large foyer and marble flooring. Crystal chandeliers hung from the cathedral ceiling. Nancy's heals clicked on the floor as they approached the desk where a woman sat, looking at them. After several pleasantries and formalities, the woman escorted the pair to a private room with a computer. She told them to have a seat while she went to get the other items that were in the account. The woman soon returned with a large box she carried by the handles, placing it on the table next to the computer. She opened up the main account online and instructed Nancy that the account was ready for transfer whenever she was. Nancy looked at the screen and her jaw dropped in shock.

"Is there something wrong, Mademoiselle?" the woman asked in heavily accented English.

"No, no problem," Nancy said quickly. She had never seen so many zeros in her life. Even Frank was surprised by how much was actually in the account. Nancy hit the button to transfer the money, hoping that Kyla was waiting to split it off into several other accounts.

"I will give you privacy to look into the case," the woman replied. "If you would like us to keep what is in it here, we can keep your account open for you. If you decide to take everything, just let me know when you leave. Excuse me."

When the woman closed the door, Nancy heaved a sigh of relief and leaned back in the chair she sat in. Frank went over to the box and began opening it to see what was inside. She stood up when he whistled pulling out Euros and several passports. There was also a note inside from James, who had obviously been there before them. It read that they would find everything they need to get around for the next few of months inside the box, including a few guns that he had procured when he arrived in Europe. The passports he gave them were backups in case they needed it along with some new IDs. He insisted that they keep a low profile as best they could and not to arouse any suspicion as to who they were. Once it was found out they were in Europe, it may become harder for them to move about without notice.

The guns he left for them were on the bottom, along with several boxes of ammunition. Frank filled the duffle with everything he could, while Nancy put a few things into her purse, including a small amount of the money and IDs. Once they were done, they left the empty box and walked out of the room, giving word to the woman at the desk that the account was closed. When they got out into the plaza, Amelia waved them over frantically to where she was.

"Someone took my picture not too long ago," she said, nervously. "I didn't catch him until it was too late. He didn't look like a bad guy but then again I don't know what to look for anyway."

"We should go," Frank said. He guided the women away from the plaza, concerned that someone may have found them already.

* * *

"How long ago was this photo taken?" asked Agent Pauline Davis. She was looking at the screen where a photo of a woman in what looked like a plaza or cafe was displayed.

"An hour ago," the tech agent stated. "It was tagged the moment it was taken and the agent is waiting for instructions."

The computer beeped again as another photo popped up, this time the woman was with two other people.

"Where is this?"

"Geneva, Ma'am. Facial recognition has confirmed that it's them. Should I tell the agent to apprehend?"

"No, by the time we get a team out there they'll be gone. Besides, the older woman tagged the photographer, from the way she's standing and pointing. Print out the photos. I need to go see the families."

After a long drive from Chicago to River Heights, Agent Davis pulled into the front driveway of the house. Once she rang the doorbell, Carson Drew was right there to answer it, eagerness written on his face. She knew the Hardys were still there which made it easier for her to relay what she was about to say.

"Were you able to find them at all?" Carson said quickly. Agent Davis didn't answer, walking into the kitchen and sitting down at the table. Both families looked at her patiently, waiting for good news. She pulled out several photos from an envelope and handed the first one of Amelia over to Carson. The others gathered around him to see.

"Do you all recognize her?"

"Of course, that's Amel…Dr. Foster," confirmed Hannah.

"When was this taken?" asked Fenton.

"Several hours ago," Davis replied. "Facial recognition confirmed her but I wanted to hear it from all of you. Here is another one."

They all took a collective breath as Davis handed another photo over. The moment the group saw them, even with the sunglasses on they instantly knew they were looking at Frank and Nancy. She was dressed in a tight, black dress and long jacket while he was in a dark suit, carrying a duffle bag. Neither one of them looked happy.

"Where are they?" asked Carson. He didn't recognize the area but assumed they were still in the states.

"Geneva."

"Which state?" asked Fenton.

"No, as in Geneva, Switzerland," Agent Davis corrected him.

"What the hell are they doing there?" he cried. "And how did they get there without anyone noticing?"

"And why are they dressed like they're going to a funeral?" Joe piped in. They all turned to look at him. "What? Just saying."

"According to the agent who took the photos, Frank and Nancy just walked out of a bank. Geneva has the best banks in the world for hiding money from sight."

"Okay, that still doesn't explain why they're there," Carson stated. "We don't have any money in a Swiss bank account."

"Yes, but someone else did. Whatever money was given to Dr. Cox is now in their possession. As for them getting there without anyone noticing, someone did notice. Just not us until these were taken. We caught this moments later."

She handed a photo of two men following the other three as they left the plaza.

"They're known associates of one William Powers."

 **Author's Note:**

 **Thank you everyone for reading! I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I loved writing it! Look for the next one within the next few weeks. Not sure how long it is going to take me to smooth out what I want to do with it including finding a title.**


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